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

[africandramalover]

2 hours ago, akhenaten said:

@justamom @africandramalover  You think she might have changed the way it ended significantly? 

 

I don't know about the end, but I suspect that they may have had to tone down the "romantic" relationship between JA and DH, make it more ambiguous. It was never going to be an explosive romance with handgrabs that change the earth's rotation and extreme kissing scenes, but I definitely think that they had to mute some of the "romantic" interaction..... to please these toddlers who kept complaining about the age gap and IU bla bla bla etc. 

 

Just how significant are these antis? How significant are they that the production team would have spend time reiterating AD NAUSEUM that the story is a "healing" drama, not a romantic drama? As far as I am concerned, they did not need to appease anyone. The drama stood on its own strength.

 

There were many negative comments at the beginning of the drama, but by the end, all these nay-sayers and HATERS had vanished!! I do not think that they needed to indulge the haters with a response or explanation of any kind. They should have ignored them and they would have gone away. You do not respond to every criticism in life! I felt cheated that adults would have to lower themselves to people with a mean age of around 17  and explain their actions.

 

 

2 hours ago, akhenaten said:

For me, I think it became a blessing in disguise for this drama that all those negative comments from the beginning and even well into the middle of its airing forced the writer and the director to come up with more creative and non-conventional ways of showing the love that was blossoming between their main protagonists. 

 

I like this thought. Seeing the silver lining in the cloud.

 

11 hours ago, anipanch said:

I have a question for yall!!!

Do you think DH was JA's first kiss??? 'Cos I do and I need validations, hit me up

 

Yes.  In between school, her grandma, her back to back temp jobs....her LIFE..... I don't see any time she has to engage in a serious relationship. Unless, as others have said, that she was used to using sexuality as a way to blackmail or earn money....

 

10 hours ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

In my view there is a tendency around the web to idealize DH... like he's extraordinarily kind or that his affection for J'A is a philanthropic platonic love in a bid to whitewash the more "taboo transgressive" aspects of that relationship.

But I wonder if DH was as extraordinary in his kindness and as philanthropic as some might prefer to classify him as,

 

Agreed. When DH said that he has never had an affair because he has never been tempted (paraphrase), my ears perked up. That was a deliberate statement by the writer. Even if he didn't get physical with JA, he definitely went further emotionally with her than with anyone else we saw in the drama, even his wife. She definitely tempted him, she's his first temptation.

 

@tiger457_stv thumbs up to your post about the Shippers and the non shippers. You've spoken like the three wise men!!

 

3 hours ago, justamom said:

BTW, on Lee Seon Gyun. Anyone noticed? His elder son looks just like him and his younger one like Jeon Hye Jin! They are such an awesome and grounded couple.

 

Could you share those pics??? I think LSK and JHJ make a visually stunning couple. Such understated beauty and handsomeness!! 

 

 

[sadiesmith]

32 minutes ago, ccl82 said:

Now about romantic vs non-romantic debate. I'm gonna sound so dang shallow, but I believe I would definitely be a non-shipper if our ahjussi look like any of his bar friends.

 

But he doesn't. He looks like this... 

 

... and sounds even more delicious. 

 

And JA is pretty. And so I ship them. I ship them so hard. If he 's not hot, I would feel yucky. Yes, I am that shallow. 

 

Hahaha.... Thanks for this picture.  He is the ultimate Korean actor for me, but I suppose if Director Kim Won Seuk had picked Gong Yoo or Jo In Sung, there would not even be non-shippers.  Do you think?  Would it have worked just as well with these more conventionally handsome actors?

 

[ccl82]

@berny, I think some people here have translated that conversation in detail; at this point, you would need to go back, I dunno... about 20 pages? 

Here's the English subs from tvN channel, word for word. DH's lines in red, his friend's in blue. Note: I don't speak Korean, and have no idea if these are correctly translated. I have since grown frustrated with subs. 
 

Spoiler

 

Hello, may I take your order?

What shall we get?
What should we get? She's buying today.
So Ji-an, pick something expensive.

Hey, it's your turn this time. 
In US age...
Is he in the US?

An ice Americano for me.

But I can't sleep when I drink Americanos.
It's a dilemma. After middle school, should he come back here? 
2 Americanos, and... 
But later...
Vanilla latte and cappucino.
Two Americanos... 
Then there's the army service.

Yes. Where are you going, Ji-an?

His mother is, well...
I'm ordering an iced coffee for you. 
She wants him to go to university there.

But I thought he was fluent in English.
No, it's because of his English that we sent him. 
But everyone speaks it nowadays. 

Really?

He looks down at me because I can't speak any!
His pronunciation isn't like ours at all.

As long as we can get the message across.
You think we can?

 

 

 

 

 

22 minutes ago, sadiesmith said:

 

Hahaha.... Thanks for this picture.  He is the ultimate Korean actor for me, but I suppose if Director Kim Won Seuk had picked Gong Yoo or Jo In Sung, there would not even be non-shippers.  Do you think?  Would it have worked just as well with these more typically handsome actors?

 

 

As long as the ahjussi is considered hot I think there will be shippers, and ambiguity theme will be played to death. 

 

My level of shallowness: 

Hot ahjussi + pretty lady = Good match, well done you two!
Not hot ahjussi + pretty lady = She be after his money?
Hot ahjussi + not pretty lady = I don't understand what's going on... 

Edited May 21, 2018 by Jillia
Please do not post consecutively, edit your previous post instead. Thanks! :)

[MsMinnieFran]

24 minutes ago, h2ogirl said:

@berny Chingu, that's the whole point! If he wasn't talking about the "ae omma" intentionally living thousands of miles away and learning English to settle there for good - right at this exact time - how would Ji Ahn, or the audience, know about Dong Hoon's marital status?

 

His marital status was a huge roadblock to his romance with Ji Ahn, no? Now we know that DH and YH, if not divorced, are separated.

This is further proof that DH and YH are not end game. If they were, them repairing there marriage and staying together wouldn't have been reduced to a side mention. IMO.

[sadiesmith]

29 minutes ago, ccl82 said:

As long as the ahjussi is considered hot I think there will be shippers, and ambiguity theme will be played to death. 

 

My level of shallowness: 

Hot ahjussi + pretty lady = Good match, well done you two!
Not hot ahjussi + pretty lady = She be after his money?
Hot ahjussi + not pretty lady = I don't understand what's going on... 

 

But my question was if they had cast a more conventionally handsome actor like Gong Yoo or Jo In Sung, would there even be NON-SHIPPERS?  Would everyone root for the romance to take off even with the big age gap written in the script?

[rellea]

Lots of great discussion going on in here, but may I direct your attention for a moment to this masterpiece?

 

 

[h2ogirl]

19 minutes ago, sadiesmith said:

But my question was if they had cast a more conventionally handsome actor like Gong Yoo or Jo In Sung, would there even be NON-SHIPPERS?  Would everyone root for the romance to take off even with the big age gap written in the script?

 

But Lee Seon Kyun was perfectly cast as the everyman ahjussi! Gong Yoo and Zo In Sung are too extraordinarily good-looking for me to take them seriously as anything but ethereal beings. LSK is handsome too, but his handsomeness has a humility (or humanness, as my sister puts it) to it, if that makes sense. That's why I found him so believable and root-worthy in this role.

 

But I do agree, had a more traditionally good-looking actor been cast in DH's role, there probably wouldn't have been so much fuss about the age gap.

[ccl82]

22 minutes ago, sadiesmith said:

 

But my question was if they had cast a more conventionally handsome actor like Gong Yoo or Jo In Sung, would there even be NON-SHIPPERS?  Would everyone root for the romance to take off even with the big age gap written in the script?

 

Oh sorry. For me personally, it then depends on the main female character's age. I found it extremely hard to watch Goblin when ET was in her high school uniform. It felt icky and wrong to ship them, so I didn't (not until she got out of her uniform anyway). Felt the same way watching J-drama Majo no Jōken.

 

Do most people consider Byung-hun to be conventionally handsome? If yes, then I guess we shall see how Mr Sunshine plays out. But then again, this is not set in contemporary times; this is set back in the days where it's probably normal for an older guy to hook up with a younger woman? 

 

What I've been trying to get at is this: if the guy has zero sex appeal to 100% percent of audience, there will be no shipper, save for some romantic fools. 

[anipanch]

Since there are still discussions going on about the love line planned vs how they gave it to us, I'd also like to share my pov, since I've come to certain conclusion while reading your thoughts and also looking at the drama from a new angle after its completion.

 

First and foremost, I am a hardcore shipper. When it comes to shipping I'm "go big or go home" and become obsessed in every sense of it. However, at the same, I don't like losing all sense and I'm pretty thankful that my wild imagination gives me the ability of imagining thousands of scenarios involving my favorite couples XD Oh and of course FANFICTIONS - god what I would do without them? Some are even better than the canons with unbelievable writing. I'm forever thankful to the writers of fanfiction and giving me chance to discover my favorite characters in wonderful situations.

That aside, was the love line enough in MA? Should the production team risked and gone against the netizens? Did they actually restrain and change the original script? My answer is no, not at all. In the end, the writer's intention wasn't to show a "love story" in its traditional sense, the one we're so used to. The show's aim was to show us beautiful human interactions and how cherishing each and every interpersonal relationship makes this life more bearable. How much kindness and understanding can change someone's life and that its important to find the inner strength inside us. If they went for an actual full-blown romance, with kisses, handholding and other romantic gestures can you actually imagine what could have happened? Especially when we have LSK and IU whose chemistry still managed to overshadow everything despite being subtle and ambiguous in every possible aspect. They would've totally stolen the show and we wouldn't really care for other things that MA conveyed. It would've become shallow. A clear love line wouldn't have made us want more, wouldn't make us think about every little detail like we did. The real meaning might as well be lost to us if not for the masterful detailing and subtlety. What we got of DonGan fitted the writing style of the whole show in general.

 

P.S. I'm still salty we didn't get a little tiny kiss in the end. It would've been perfect

[berny]

1 hour ago, ccl82 said:

@berny, I think some people here have translated that conversation in detail; at this point, you would need to go back, I dunno... about 20 pages? 

Here's the English subs from tvN channel, word for word. DH's lines in red, his friend's in blue. Note: I don't speak Korean, and have no idea if these are correctly translated. I have since grown frustrated with subs. 
 

  Hide contents

 

Hello, may I take your order?

What shall we get?
What should we get? She's buying today.
So Ji-an, pick something expensive.

Hey, it's your turn this time. 
In US age...
Is he in the US?

An ice Americano for me.

But I can't sleep when I drink Americanos.
It's a dilemma. After middle school, should he come back here? 
2 Americanos, and... 
But later...
Vanilla latte and cappucino.
Two Americanos... 
Then there's the army service.

Yes. Where are you going, Ji-an?

His mother is, well...
I'm ordering an iced coffee for you. 
She wants him to go to university there.

But I thought he was fluent in English.
No, it's because of his English that we sent him. 
But everyone speaks it nowadays. 

Really?

He looks down at me because I can't speak any!
His pronunciation isn't like ours at all.

As long as we can get the message across.
You think we can?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Woah! that tvN version of the conversation is TOTALY DIFFERENT...  the other sites have obviously misinterpreted the entire convo... is that 'intentional' in their part? or was it a rush work since they are subbing many other dramas.. or theyre just not that an expert in the korean language?

[ccl82]

3 minutes ago, berny said:

 

Woah! that tvN version of the conversation is TOTALY DIFFERENT...  the other sites have obviously misinterpreted the entire convo... is that 'intentional' in their part? or was it a rush work since they are subbing many other dramas.. or theyre just not that an expert in the korean language?

 

Not sure. Maybe junior translators? I don't wanna think of a world where subtitlists are evil people, deliberately changing what was said to push their own belief 

[sadiesmith]

11 minutes ago, ccl82 said:

 

Oh sorry. For me personally, it then depends on the main female character's age. I found it extremely hard to watch Goblin when ET was in her high school uniform. It felt icky and wrong to ship them, so I didn't (not until she got out of her uniform anyway). Felt the same way watching J-drama Majo no Jōken.

 

Do most people consider Byung-hun to be conventionally handsome? If yes, then I guess we shall see how Mr Sunshine plays out. But then again, this is not set in contemporary times; this is set back in the days where it's probably normal for an older guy to hook up with a younger woman? 

 

What I've been trying to get at is this: if the guy has zero sex appeal to 100% percent of audience, there will be no shipper, save for some romantic fools. 

 

I think the female character's age and the real actress cast definitely play a role.  Yes, there was a HUGE uproar when IU was first considered for the role, something that I thought wouldn't have happened had someone like Kim Go Eun be cast instead.  The production team bent over backward by saying this was a healing/human drama, although never did they say there would not be romance.  Mr. Sunshine may not have to tread water so lightly because the female lead Kim Tae Ri had already played very mature and risque role in her film.  

 

10 minutes ago, anipanch said:

Since there are still discussions going on about the love line planned vs how they gave it to us, I'd also like to share my pov, since I've come to certain conclusion while reading your thoughts and also looking at the drama from a new angle after its completion.

 

First and foremost, I am a hardcore shipper. When it comes to shipping I'm "go big or go home" and become obsessed in every sense of it. However, at the same, I don't like losing all sense and I'm pretty thankful that my wild imagination gives me the ability of imagining thousands of scenarios involving my favorite couples XD Oh and of course FANFICTIONS - god what I would do without them? Some are even better than the canons with unbelievable writing. I'm forever thankful to the writers of fanfiction and giving me chance to discover my favorite characters in wonderful situations.

That aside, was the love line enough in MA? Should the production team risked and gone against the netizens? Did they actually restrain and change the original script? My answer is no, not at all. In the end, the writer's intention wasn't to show a "love story" in its traditional sense, the one we're so used to. The show's aim was to show us beautiful human interactions and how cherishing each and every interpersonal relationship makes this life more bearable. How much kindness and understanding can change someone's life and that its important to find the inner strength inside us. If they went for an actual full-blown romance, with kisses, handholding and other romantic gestures can you actually imagine what could have happened? Especially when we have LSK and IU whose chemistry still managed to overshadowed everything despite being subtle and ambiguous in every possible aspect. They would've totally stolen the show and we wouldn't really care for other things that MA conveyed. It would've become shallow. A clear love line wouldn't have made us want more, wouldn't make us think about every little detail like we did. The real meaning might as well be lost to us if not for the masterful detailing and subtlety. What we got of DonGan fitted the writing style of the whole show in general.

 

P.S. I'm still salty we didn't get a little tiny kiss in the end. It would've been perfect

 

This is so well written @anipanch, thank you for sharing your thought.  They did not compromise their story-telling, but they toned the romantic aspect way down to the point many could not even see it.  And I am totally salty we did not get a tiny little kiss in the end.

[h2ogirl]

16 minutes ago, berny said:

Woah! that tvN version of the conversation is TOTALY DIFFERENT...  the other sites have obviously misinterpreted the entire convo... is that 'intentional' in their part? or was it a rush work since they are subbing many other dramas.. or theyre just not that an expert in the korean language?

 

I'm just a beginner in Korean, but the disparity is probably because the subject of the conversation is not clear. Is it Yoon Hee or Ji Seok? Both seem to work. But the important takeaway is the same: YH is referred to as "ae omma", not "jib saram". #shipperforever ❤ 

[kdramafanlsk]

Hi! I joined soompi just to contribute to this thread  i love MA so much I just have to share some of my thoughts. I always want a happy ending. Well, for the simple reason that it is so much easier to move on from a drama if it is a happy ending.  Let me just say first that I absolutely agree they are connected in the deepest way and they are strongly drawn to each other. So I dont know why I felt sad when I saw that ending while for some viewers it was easy to conclude that they'll end up together. So i tried to read comments here for some answers. And on page186 of this thread I may have found an answer in a passing comment by CCL82.:

 

Some of the stuff I disliked from episode 15:

 

-- YH speaking to JA via the phone. Just, cruel.  UGH. 

 

And a line made by YH to DH which reads "She [Jian] wants me to go back to you"

 

1. JA knowing how loyal DH is to family never gave indication that she wants him to be hers. Selflessly loving from afar no matter how much it probably pains her.

 

2. CCL82 is right. Sharing that intimate access to JA thru that phone to YH is plain cruel I would imagine from POV of JA. And PD will not consciously hurt JA by doing this unless he is just plain oblivious to JA really feels for him or he just brushes aside JA's romantic feelings. 

 

3. In fact, he must be non vocal in denying any romantic feelings for JA because he is simply a gentleman who doesnt want to hurt JA with a rejection. But this does not discount the fact that he feels a strong compassion and connection with JA. (P.S. responding also is acknowledging it and DH would never acknowledge such a thing as a married man. In fact he would rather rationalize it and label it as mutual pity. He is just that type of guy)

 

4. But unconsciously by sharing access to the pbone to his wife and always referring to jib chalam or wife in JA's presence, he actually rejects any love overtures from JA. no guy who is interested in a girl will keep mentioning his wife and even using "Jib Chalam" in such a comfortable manner. Really. Think about it.

 

5. And not having idea yet that JA will invite him for a delicious meal, he asked to shake hands and said thank you. You say thank you with such a fondness and finality in your voice if you are bidding someone a goodbye. 

 

So that's probably why i really felt sad by that exchange. Because I so much wanted it to be mutual love rekindled when they meet. But it felt like DH has moved on. Even the casual invitation to his office seems like a very casual invite. Not an intimate and loaded statement youd expect from someone who finally meets someone he missed for a year or two.  (Being lost for words like JA seems to suggest it more.) He has moved on that is why he is also no longer scared to touch JA. 

 

But, of course, now knowing that JA will try regain contact with him, they'd meet again. Who knows, maybe now DH will start seeing JA in a romantic way. (Btw, i also think DH is physically separated from his wife, maybe even  emotionally that is why his aura is so light. But it doesnt mean he will embark on a new relationship. Although I would definitely want them to.) Depends on how it will develop when they start meeting regularly again.

 

Thanks everyone for great insights and discussion. I am seriously stuck to this drama and cant move on. I think i need to watch something else just to wean myself from this masterpiece. I hope MA sweeps all drama awards in Korea. ♡♡♡

 

P.S.: in fact JA selfless love was evident to JH when JA said she cant stay in the neighborhood because DH wont be able to come. The look on JH's face after hearing it is one of surprise and maybe realization and a little shame that in contrast, her love for the monk in a way turned the monk into a pariah, a taboo. So Ae Ryon and JA must have helped JH see the light, albeit Ae Ryon's way was a little harsh, Ja's was unintended.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2018 by kdramafanlsk
Just forgot to add some points regarding JA's exchange with JH.

[philosophie]

What’s interesting is that I think JA feared DH would get punch the door level mad because he was angry at YH that it was with JY, who he hates. So I think JA was expecting him to loose his temper too when finding out it was related to JY again. What does that have to say about him being mad at YH but not at JA? I think it was showing how he’s not someone that just gets mad easily even if someone does him wrong, usually it’s for a very important reason like in his case with YH where she knew about the bribe and was helping JY get him fired. That was more of a betrayal than JA that publicly in the meeting protected DH by not throwing him under the bus.

[ninaanin]

1 hour ago, ccl82 said:

@berny, I think some people here have translated that conversation in detail; at this point, you would need to go back, I dunno... about 20 pages? 

Here's the English subs from tvN channel, word for word. DH's lines in red, his friend's in blue. Note: I don't speak Korean, and have no idea if these are correctly translated. I have since grown frustrated with subs. 
 

  Hide contents

 

Hello, may I take your order?

What shall we get?
What should we get? She's buying today.
So Ji-an, pick something expensive.

Hey, it's your turn this time. 
In US age...
Is he in the US?

An ice Americano for me.

But I can't sleep when I drink Americanos.
It's a dilemma. After middle school, should he come back here? 
2 Americanos, and... 
But later...
Vanilla latte and cappucino.
Two Americanos... 
Then there's the army service.

Yes. Where are you going, Ji-an?

His mother is, well...
I'm ordering an iced coffee for you. 
She wants him to go to university there.

But I thought he was fluent in English.
No, it's because of his English that we sent him. 
But everyone speaks it nowadays. 

Really?

He looks down at me because I can't speak any!
His pronunciation isn't like ours at all.

As long as we can get the message across.
You think we can?

 

 

 

 

 

How I whish I could have watched the episode with TVN subs!!! I wouldn't have be so conflicted about the ending, it wouldn't have downplayed my pleasure. 

 

What I big difference it makes. The whole conversation is about the son, not about the mother.

[Schiau]

Quote

Gong Yoo and Zo In Sung are too extraordinarily good-looking for me to take them seriously as anything but ethereal beings

 

Am I weird to not consider Jo In Sung handsome in the popular "seducer" type, rather in the "casual charismatic" handsome type. I don't see him being a heart breaker, the type of man who makes "all girls wet".

 

For me, those men are the "seducer" or "hottie" type is someone like Song Seung Hon

 

 

 

Or the "prince charming" type like Lee Min Ho:

Spoiler

 

 

At least to me, just like LSK, Jo In Sunt gives me a "dorky" vibe, like he is handsome not because f his looks, but because of hia attitude:

 

 

I gotta, say, he would have been such an interesting choice for Park Dong Hoon:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2018 by Jillia
Please put more than 3 pics/IGs in spoiler tags, thanks!

[oregonahjussi]

One thing seldom mentioned is how deeply Jian was emotionally connected to DH through the phone bug.  She was like a pocket lover with him intimately sharing every moment of his day and night if she so desired.  She could listen to him brushing his teeth, undressing for bed, sighing, yawning, sleeping, or waking up in the morning.  This level of intimacy put her on an emotional plain DH could just not feel.  JA’s emotions were focused on DH exclusively while much of DH’s emotions were based upon a reaction to his personal loneliness.

The drama casually stepped over the deep emotional angst JA must have felt when she moved to Busan and was totally cut off from him.  No listening, no phone calls.  Only those of us who have suffered great loss can understand the hollow of her pain.  Still she managed to persevere and overcome it all.

I’m posting this link to a song that my daughter wrote as a tribute to Jian’s hopefulness that overrode despair during the long dark night of her soul as she slowly healed from the loss of her connection to DH.  Whether her wish came true we will never know.  It’s a safe YouTube video and I’ll just pretend it’s a FanTrack OST. 

If anyone likes it and wants to translate the lyrics to Korean that would be great.

Edited May 21, 2018 by oregonahjussi

[nearsea]

2 hours ago, ccl82 said:

@berny, I think some people here have translated that conversation in detail; at this point, you would need to go back, I dunno... about 20 pages? 

Here's the English subs from tvN channel, word for word. DH's lines in red, his friend's in blue. Note: I don't speak Korean, and have no idea if these are correctly translated. I have since grown frustrated with subs. 
 

  Hide contents

 

Hello, may I take your order?

What shall we get?
What should we get? She's buying today.
So Ji-an, pick something expensive.

Hey, it's your turn this time. 
In US age...
Is he in the US?

An ice Americano for me.

But I can't sleep when I drink Americanos.
It's a dilemma. After middle school, should he come back here? 
2 Americanos, and... 
But later...
Vanilla latte and cappucino.
Two Americanos... 
Then there's the army service.

Yes. Where are you going, Ji-an?

His mother is, well...
I'm ordering an iced coffee for you. 
She wants him to go to university there.

But I thought he was fluent in English.
No, it's because of his English that we sent him. 
But everyone speaks it nowadays. 

Really?

He looks down at me because I can't speak any!
His pronunciation isn't like ours at all.

As long as we can get the message across.
You think we can?

 

 

 

1

 

3

Thank you so much! I have watched the last episode properly only now. So the last scene was quite puzzling for me. At least this one is solved, thanks to tvn's subtitle. Cause the one that's available on other sites[ dramafever's] is totally messed up. They made it look like dong hoon sent yoon hee to the US so she could learn English? :|

Even if I consider tvn's subtitle, why would he still talk to a friend about the wife, if they have separated? Could it be that he didn't want to talk about the seperation to people until it is all sorted out?

Also, I am eating my own words, but that photo of yoon hee with the kid, has me got all confused. That's like a happy picture. Is that how separated couples keep their photos on their desk? 

I am pretty mad at the writer/  dong hoon for not ever telling ji an how he felt about her, but one thing is pretty sure till the end. She loved him. That last meal they are having together, she says it's quite pathetic that I used to take rounds around the neighborhood just hoping that I could get one glimpse of you. So seeing how you are saying you are gonna be happy without me, I can't deal with that. That's an outright confession there. And he listened to her and smiled. [He looked quite upset once he got to know that she was leaving, but he didn't say anything.] 

 I am sorry for changing my words but from the recaps what I thought would be the case, it didn't appear that way onscreen. Although once yoon hee left and like the way dong hoon gave the information to omma that she would be staying there for a while, it just seemed that he can sense the separation was coming. But then the dialogue with the colleague happened, and it is making me question my own deduction lol. 

My only consolation would be ji an still loving him and looking at him the same way like she used to before. Even the voiceover, my pessimistic self is thinking whether that dialogue is just the two souls speaking to themselves in their mind.

Honestly, I do think the writer caved in and didn't give us the ending she originally intended to happen. Cause the way ji an has been looking at him all through ep 16 and like she said, ajussi hasn't come here once since I have been staying here, it speaks a volume about her feelings. But dong hoon kept telling her that he would be happy, and like she says she's hurt that he can be happy without her. 

Anyway separated or not, he looked back at ji an when they were leaving, and that look does say something. It's just upsetting that we didn't get to know what he thought about her. At this point, I even find his promise to ji an about being happy a fake promise tbh, because is he really happy? Why does he make that sad face when he looked back at her for the last time if he's actually happy like he promised he would be. 

Watching the final episode I came to the conclusion that both dong hoon and his monk friend are same in this way that they never acknowledged properly the women who loved them. Even when the monk comes to visit jung hee, when she asks him if he ever felt guilty because of leaving her, he just gives her this blank smile. I thought he was being quite cruel, by thinking that it's okay to leave this life, the girl who needed him, he didn't give a proper closure to her feelings for him. Likewise, dong hoon always knew how ji an felt about him, but all he did was taking her words in silently but never giving back anything verbally. Their interaction at the end is giving me the feeling of two people meeting at a stop and then after their having their rendezvous for a short period, going back to their own lives. The ending didn't feel like the main course, it felt like an appetizer lol. Sorry fellow shippers for ruining your mood.

P.S: Dear @ccl82 , can you kindly share the link to the clip of the subbed version that you mentioned? Thanks in advance! 

** It would be great if any of our Korean language specialists here could kindly share, what did they think dong hoon and that colleague's conversation was about.

[sadiesmith]

2 hours ago, africandramalover said:

Could you share those pics??? I think LSK and JHJ make a visually stunning couple. Such understated beauty and handsomeness!! 

 

LSK has admitted many times that his wife is a much better actor than he is.  I haven't seen her in anything, but judging from all the nominations she has won in the very short time she has been back in acting, he must be correct in his assessment of her skills.  And yes, they are beautiful indeed.  And she is very tall.

 

Video of their press conference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=644oU0pRe3o