[Drama 2018] Should We Kiss First?, 키스 먼저 할까요

[chickfactor]

For those who had guessed that Mu-Han had some sort of illness, kudos to you.

 

For those who had guessed that Mu-Han had something to do with Soon-Jin's daughter's death, kudos to you.

 

You know your K-dramas. You can probably write one yourselves.

 

I am bummed. Can't we have anything nice? Can't Soon-Jin? Are we going to have yet another "most beautiful and intense romance ever (until death does them part)" story?? With an ambiguous ending, leaving the inevitable death off screen? And after that, we are left to imagine that the love they shared will sustain her for the rest of her days? Or he will die in her arms on a lonely beach, like that other famous drama?

 

Oh, waaah. I'm sad.

 

Okay, that's what this is. I will eventually reach the "acceptance" stage.

 

--

 

Anyway, it does look like it was Mu-Han's wife's family that may have been involved with the daughter's death. When Kyung-Soo heard the name of the construction company that the wife hails from (I forgot the name), he became extra angry. And when he talked to Mu-Han later, about his ex-wife pursuing charges against Soon-Jin, he said, "you are behaving like a rich person throwing money around to crush others, just like you did 10 years ago." So something happened 10 years ago that involved this construction company.

 

My guess is that it was shoddy construction (building? bridge?) that somehow contributed to the girl's death, and Soon-Jin raged against them (vandalism? assault?) and they made sure she was prosecuted for it and sicced a bunch of high-priced lawyers on her, just like they are doing now.

 

--

 

I think Mu-Han was very hurt by Soon-Jin's phone conversation with Mira. But then he recalled the raw emotional moments they shared together the night before, and realized what the truth really is. Hurray.

 

That is when I love this drama best. When it just really dives deep into the emotions. I did love Mu-Han's defiance against his grim diagnosis, but I still feel a little tricked. Terminal illness. Evil conglomerate crushing the regular person. I was hoping that we could avoid those tropes.

 

Oh well. *sigh* I still love this show.

[dzareth]

1 hour ago, chickfactor said:

I think Mu-Han was very hurt by Soon-Jin's phone conversation with Mira. But then he recalled the raw emotional moments they shared together the night before, and realized what the truth really is. Hurray.

 

MH is probably still suspicious of SJ's sincerity in this regard. The preview showed MH being cold and nonchalant toward SJ. His marriage proposal is likely due to KS warning to not play with SJ's emotions and finish what he began with her. While he is aware of SJ's past, he isn't sure of her current motivations.

 

But I'm crossing my fingers that he will realise SJ's statement was due to her own insecurities at her ability to love again.

 

MH is also at fault for this situation because he say things that does not give security to SJ - sleep together, eat separately; promises for the present but not the past/future; wanting to love her yet previously saying there are things he cannot and won't give.

 

(Sigh....) Mondays rarely feel so far...

[mushforbrains]

Just managed to catch the subbed episode....looks like the next couple of episodes are gonna be rough...probably finding the connection between her daughter's death and his family....plus him having to deal with the possibility of her being a " gold digger"..

and of course the very ominous end scene stolen from the Japanese movie....

barely recovered from the tears in 7dq....k drama addicts must be masochists!

 

sucked in...agggh....

 

[Guest]

While thinking about these latest episodes you can't help but also think back to how it began even though there are still pieces missing to our story.  When I think about MH and all the times in which he has observed SJ's life.  How piece by piece it's been given to us and in a way that now seems like an idea from a writer who it would seem is an emotional genius.  Revealing SJ and her struggles and brokenness through the eyes of MH.  Like poetry instead of words, beauty instead of heartbreak mixing sadness with laughter and love with need...

 

My heart wonders how is it that MH's heart was first tied to SJ how, when and why? Yet for what ever reasons she became a real and thriving part of his life.  The scenes of their first night really physically being together the sound of MH reading once again to her.  I won't lie, it made me think dang that mans voice and the tenderness in which he reads would comfort any woman's heart.  Her words the following day were so humbling and honest towards him instead of tears falling it felt as if SJ were shedding droplets of blood in opening her heart allowing MH to see more than her nakedness outside of her but what lies within as well. Those words were brilliant!!!

 

I think when facing death MH has mixed feelings about how do I love and protect her and yet how can I leave her with more pain to endure after I'm gone.  When he already knows and has witnessed  her mountain of pain so many times first hand.  Right now I think it's more about protecting her in what ever means possible.  Although she wasn't his first in many of life's steps I believe he couldn't help himself in wanting her to be his last everything. He feels selfish and often confused.  Yet he can't help himself or hold back his heart when all he has ever wanted and wants was to honestly love and be loved back by not just any woman but this woman SJ whom he respects, trusts and admires... 

When others saw her weakness he saw her courage... 

 

 

[mintea18]

 

 

More gifs below spoiler tag  

 

 

 

 

Cr:mintea18

[gladys57]

@mintea18, thank you so much for the lovely gifs of our MUJIN couple's lovey dovey moments. They look absolutely GOOD & HAPPY together! KWS looks particularly young here! 

I can rewatch these scenes again and again! They look like a couple on their honeymoon. 

[hyall]

This show is breaking my heart but when she said 'don't make his bathroom sound sexy(or words to that effect)  since I intend to pee, poo and fart in your bathroom' made me roar with laughter.

[mintea18]

On 15/3/2018 at 4:02 PM, gladys57 said:

@mintea18, thank you so much for the lovely gifs of our MUJIN couple's lovey dovey moments. They look absolutely GOOD & HAPPY together! KWS looks particularly young here! 

I can rewatch these scenes again and again! They look like a couple on their honeymoon. 

You're welcome!  Ikr, KSA and KWS's chemistry is soooo good!

 

Some of my other favorite scenes of MuJin couple 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

[gladys57]

OMO! More MUJIN's sweet moments gifs. Thanks again. Just cant get enough of them!

MH's "GAZE" is extremely heart fluttering and KWS can really EMOTE so well! He's got that smexy look! Heeeee! 

[mundane9]

looks like this show is headed for an unhappy ending with MH's stage 4 diagnosis. I don't know if I can stomach more tragedy in SJ's life.

[mushforbrains]

I'm hoping that she is going to be pregnant like a reader suggested in bahdoo....that would be a happy ending...since she identifies so much with being a Mother...

otherwise...freezing to death in the snow...since their car stalled in the snow.....

hate it when dramas make me worry about endings...but it usually means I'm sucked in bad....

[choinyen]

why did we have to have terminal cancer??? i did not sign up for this... but I can't drop it anymore

I know it's a long shot, but I am hoping against hope for a happy ending huhuhu... 

[Guest]

 

The last few days I have been thinking about this drama and about this OTP and about how far they have come from our first introduction to them and their lives.  I also thought about dying and about living and how instead of looking at them through their sorrows and struggles.  Through the view of Cancer or their suffering or loss even in their past.  That this writer might want us to focus on the beauty that lies underneath all of that.

 

About living in the moment. MH giving SJ maybe the greatest gift a man can give a woman, that of making her thankful she is one.  Reminding her that she is among the living that someone could want her even though she feels lost within her own self.  Yet it's as if MH is planting himself like a seed within her heart.  He waters her with his soft yet tender nature and holds her hand in teaching her to take courage.  He is firm when she needs someone to protect or guide her.

 

What is it that SJ gives MH?  I think she gives him space and understanding to be himself.  She gives him warmth and thankfulness in having someone just to be next to him so that he too can feel alive.  He receives comfort and even laughter in the things she does without even knowing.  She makes him smile and feel things that are not controlled or expected but it's most likely what he has always seen in her from the start that she was different and set apart.

 

My Dad who lost his own battle with Cancer once said. " Let's live as normal as we can, for as long as I am able."  I think that is MH's wish too!  To not wear a cancer banner across his chest but to live one day at a time always believing and hoping for a miracle.  Yet always preparing those around you through love without them knowing in case one doesn't come. 

 

It's as if MH wants to gift SJ through marriage not just a home and shelter from the world but a part of himself to carry within her.  In hopes to give her courage and strength enabling  her to realize the power and value that lies within herself.  To be able to face the unknown boldly even if she must face it alone...

 

 

 

[UnniSarah]

2 hours ago, USAFarmgirl said:

It's as if MH wants to gift SJ through marriage not just a home and shelter from the world but a part of himself to carry within her.  In hopes to give her courage and strength enabling  her to realize the power and value that lies within herself.  To be able to face the unknown boldly even if she must face it alone...

@USAFarmgirl  I agree chingu,he is showering her with gifts. He is loving her , making her laugh , giving her little of adventures and trying to give her a reason to want to truly live. I think that another gift he could be giving her is another baby. Now that would be the best gift and that will make her want to live again. Shelter, money and love isn't enough to give her the edge to want to live again. Don't forget he is terminally ill, once he is gone she will be depressed again. SO maybe a baby is what the writer is truly aiming for....           

[Guest]

@UnniSarah  I love the way you think and I will be hoping you're right!!!!  A baby is a wonderful gift that would be PERFECT!!!

[UnniSarah]

@USAFarmgirl.... Thanks chingu, sometimes I surprise myself and have a good theory for a drama that comes true.  It would be the best gift because there is always light when surrounded by darkness. It is all about knowing where to look and not to give up hope.  I love reading your POV too chingu...... I hate forgetting to write what is on my mind..... 

[dzareth]

Now that I've regenerated my braincells after burning them with conspiracy theories at the Misty forum, let us rejoice and return to the happier but more heart wrenching SWKF discussion. Looking forward to see MH in a pissy mood tonight. But Soon Jin-ah, please stop treating/thinking MH as a prize/host. You deserve love too.

 

Hopefully the OTP is able to solve whatever misunderstanding they have within this episode.

[hushhh]

On 3/14/2018 at 4:08 AM, chickfactor said:

i enjoyed your post on this.  I wanted to interact/converse with it.  Nothing written is meant to challenge your ideas. People sometimes get all weird in the forum, so I wanted to be clear about my intentions.

 

For those who had guessed that Mu-Han had some sort of illness, kudos to you. Did not see this coming. So much pathos in our starting premise, it never occurred to me the writer would think that what Soon-Jin needed to heal was not living happily ever after but a better death. Silly me.

 

For those who had guessed that Mu-Han had something to do with Soon-Jin's daughter's death, kudos to you.  Suspected this, but it felt convoluted and overly intertwined, but it might be afterall.  I thought that there was a specific reason for Kyung-Soo insisting that anyone but Mu-Han because Mu-Han is trash.

 

You know your K-dramas. You can probably write one yourselves.  Others, maybe, but not me. 

 

I am bummed. Can't we have anything nice? Because no matter what we (the audience)say we are here for the pain and the catharsis that comes with it. Can't Soon-Jin? Are we going to have yet another "most beautiful and intense romance ever (until death does them part)" story?? With an ambiguous ending, leaving the inevitable death off screen? And after that, we are left to imagine that the love they shared will sustain her for the rest of her days? Or he will die in her arms on a lonely beach, like that other famous drama? I think k-drama has beaten me into submission.  I've always been pro-death when death was a part of the premise. With Scent of a Woman and Contract Marriage I was irritated because death was a part of the set up and the creative team "copped out" and gave an ambiguous ending.  I can deal with ambiguity in this drama because death was not a part of the opening premise and it was revealed so late in the game.

 

 

Spoiler

Now weekend dramas love to be pointlessly cruel.  In My Golden Life  the premise was that a character thought he was dying and kept it to himself, but it turns that he was wrong, until he died of the disease he said thought he had but assume was a wrong diagnosis.  It sounds weird but I can't make it any clearer. 

 

Or like the kdrama tractor trailer of death in Let's Go to School, Sang Doo. 

 

Or late disease death in All About My Mother.

 

Oh, waaah. I'm sad.

 

Okay, that's what this is. I will eventually reach the "acceptance" stage.

 

--

Anyway, it does look like it was Mu-Han's wife's family that may have been involved with the daughter's death. When Kyung-Soo heard the name of the construction company that the wife hails from (I forgot the name), he became extra angry. And when he talked to Mu-Han later, about his ex-wife pursuing charges against Soon-Jin, he said, "you are behaving like a rich person throwing money around to crush others, just like you did 10 years ago." So something happened 10 years ago that involved this construction company.

I suspected Mu-Han was not directly involved in what happened but was "responsible" through association.  That was my justification for him asking if he had the right to love Soon-Jin.  I didn't suspect that he was dying.  I'm still not 100% convince that this connection has been proven as yet.

 

My streaming has been so horrid lately that it sometimes take 3 hours to watch an episode and as a result I am missing nuance and more.  I haven't gotten the sense that Soon-Jin is aware of Mu-Han's connection to her daughter's death. Considering Soon-Jin in ability to forgive her mother regarding her daughter's death I wonder how she would react to Mu-Han when that association is known.

 

In truth, Soon-Jin world has narrowed and her ability to see outside of her despair is limited.  Mu-Han has been aware of her and the details of her life and yet he hasn't registered on her radar.  She did not know they lived in the same building, he did. She might have known at one time, but it seems she is suffering from some trauma induced amnesia.

 

My guess is that it was shoddy construction (building? bridge?) that somehow contributed to the girl's death, and Soon-Jin raged against them (vandalism? assault?) and they made sure she was prosecuted for it and sicced a bunch of high-priced lawyers on her, just like they are doing now. 

Mu-Han ex-wife didn't give any indication that she recognized Soon-Jin from anything outside the current context of issues with her daughter. Is it because the vandalism and assault happened after she had left for the States?

--

I think Mu-Han was very hurt by Soon-Jin's phone conversation with Mira. But then he recalled the raw emotional moments they shared together the night before, and realized what the truth really is. Hurray.

I agree that Mu-Han was hurt. I don't think he proposed for any warm and squishy reason.  He proposed because he loves her and pities her situation.  He hasn't forgiven her for being dishonest, but he can see the dire situation she is in.  Also he offered himself to her.  He told her use me anyway you need.  He's allowing her to use him as she needs.  Unfortunately he will protect his heart from her, as any sane person would do and end up hurting her deeply.

 

I think Mu-Han misunderstood what Soon-Jin was saying/meaning in her conversation on the phone.  Soon-Jin was asking if pretending to love someone can lead to loving that person because she has already begun to love Mu-Han genuinely.

 

That is when I love this drama best. When it just really dives deep into the emotions. I did love Mu-Han's defiance against his grim diagnosis, but I still feel a little tricked. Terminal illness. Evil conglomerate crushing the regular person. I was hoping that we could avoid those tropes.

 

All recycled tropes are tiring, until they are done well. 

 

On 3/14/2018 at 4:08 AM, chickfactor said:

 

Oh well. *sigh* I still love this show.

 

[hushhh]

25 minutes ago, dzareth said:

Now that I've regenerated my braincells after burning them with conspiracy theories at the Misty forum, let us rejoice and return to the happier but more heart wrenching SWKF discussion. Looking forward to see MH in a pissy mood tonight. But Soon Jin-ah, please stop treating/thinking MH as a prize/host. You deserve love too.

Yes Soon-Jin deserve love too, but on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, food, sex, sleep, shelter is the bottom rung/foundational, then security and safety.  Only when those are in place can most people move on to love.

[just4fun]

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