[Drama 2021] Miss Monte Cristo, 미스 몬테크리스토

[TheQueenReturns]

1 hour ago, Lmangla said:

watched raw and I was a bit confused. they just end with sirens in the background. am guessing it wasn't a happy ending though right? guess we will know with subs... 

Kocowa needs to speed up their subtitles for this drama.

[msmy]

Yep, definitely one of the better daily dramas.  I liked these last several episodes that tied up things nicely without adding silly fluff to take up space.  The last episode was superb and well written to neatly summarize the drama.  I guess EJ's future is up to anyone's interpretation, but I'll assume she was too mentally unstable to offer anything very coherent during any kind of questioning by the authorities.  HJ's final words were lovely and showed he had matured through a harrowing family crisis.  The acting was superb by everyone.

 

Thanks, friends, for hanging in there.  See you at another drama.  

[Jonah Kyle]

Just saw it w/ subs. To be honest, this was a rather pedestrian ending, but it's very hard to wrap up an sustained plot with many character threads in half an hour. Some of them did not resolve as I think they should, such as EJ's culpability with law enforcement (though that was implied with the sirens in the final scene), the disposition of Ji Wang Industries, etc. But at least Ga Heun's legacy will live on in a hot new video game as the face of Phoenix in HJ's new software venture!

 

 

(Image attribution: KBS)

[joccu]

well this daily is finally over.  I honestly don´t know how to feel about the ending.  But anyway at least Disco oppa found what made his happy. Games. So he made his own game! nice for him. 

 

thank for everyone for amazing comments and fun post. see you in other daily threads! 

[LeftCoastOppa]

So, Episode 100 ... and its over.

 

The Story - When you title a drama Miss MonteCristo, you set the expectation bar fairly high.  Sorry, Writer/PD-nim ... you never got close. 

 

Villains - To give your hero a satisfying/justified victory, you need a consistent and credible threat. None of the Villains in this drama came close to providing that - JMHO

 

Hero - While there is certainly nothing wrong with a Hero struggling with the darkness inside them, and that struggle is certainly part of many different tellings of the MonteCristo story, having that struggle play out in an almost bi-polar nature took away a large portion of the stories credibility - Again JMHO

 

Characters - Again, when taking on the retelling of the MonteCristo story, characters should have had more clearly defined roles in relation to the source material - this would've made the drama more enjoyable to follow

 

Eun-Jo/Miss MonteCristo - Eun-Jo as character started fine - she was young overly optimistic and naive in the ways of the world - Her transformation to Miss M was believable, and that pretty much is where things began to go down hill.   While Edmond was revenge driven, he was not abjectly cruel to innocents, nor did he struggle with his own sanity - After spending the entire drama hissing and spitting both veiled and overt threats at Ha-Ra, to suddenly try to save her as she is about to do EXACTLY what you planned for her to do was an EPIC failure of this character.  Poor story telling, especially at the end.

 

Ha-Ra - Ha-Ra had flashes of brilliance, but again more failure in storytelling. The writer/PD hinted at Ha-Ra's madness, but that madness never fully materialized, and in the end was far eclipsed by Se-Rin's character insanity. Far too many ridiculous character choices to mention.  Should have been, far and away, the lead villain. In the end, just one of many.

 

Se-Rin - Underutilized talent - The actress playing Se-Rin was wasted in the role until the final 3rd of the drama. Having the character of Se-Rin be subservient to Ha-Ra was fine, but to have her be so completely oblivious to almost everything was beyond ridiculous. Once she became more confident/defiant, she was a joy to watch, and the acting during Se-Rins decent into madness was top notch.  The actress could easily carry lead villain duties in any drama.  JMHO 

 

Cha Sun-Hyuk - While Uni Oppa's undying love certainly mirrored Mercedes from the source material, his perpetual black cloud certainly didn't.  I spent about 80% of this drama waiting patiently for the "Lone Wolf" they kept hinting at to appear, but other than mere glimpses, NOTHING. 

 

Oh Ha-Jun - DF Oppa is the clear winner among this drama's characters, and interestingly enough his character doesn't seem to be directly drawn from the source material. ( Sorry guys, He is not a male version of Haydee )  DF Oppa character arc is by far and away the most complete among all characters, and he carried much of the later episodes. Minus Miss M, DF Oppa was the drama's Hero.

 

 

Random Thoughts on the Minor/Lesser Characters

 

Chairman Oh - the calm, cold, calculating, despicable villain we should've had from the start

 

Grandma - underutilized in the end, it was like they had no lines for her so they gave her a stroke

 

Housekeeper - Pure comic relief, although they never really answered the hows & whys of her loyalty

 

EvilStepMom - being unable to turn that collar up on her prison jumpsuit is the true punishment

 

TopKnot Mom - Episode filler in the first 2/3 of the drama - shined with more character depth in the last 3rd

 

Old Mom - Suffered more that alot of major characters, and too much from Eun-Jo

 

New Mom - GET REVENGE! oh you are? ... well maybe you shouldn't then  ( dementia setting in overnight?, SMH )

 

Mr Wang - He just happened to be in the right place at the right time ... with a Truck of Doom ... yeah right

 

Papa Ju -  Sleezy, despicable, craven, leech ... Sorry, it was still wrong to kill him

 

 

 

 

In the end, I think I enjoyed this thread as much or more than the drama - Thanks to all you Chingu's

 

Special thanks to my Dailies Nemesis @maribella for picking up the new thread when the old one went down

 

I'm off to the "Red Shoes" Daily thread come Monday. Hope to see you guys there.  If not take care & stay safe

 

 

 

LCO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[maribella]

34 minutes ago, LeftCoastOppa said:

Special thanks to my Dailies Nemesis @maribella for picking up the new thread when the old one went down

Thank YOU. I know you will come around and give a big round of support for HJ.  @LeftCoastOppa
It looks like Jewang is managed by honest professionals now. It is a common wish among kdrama writers that conglomerates are not controlled by families. Perhaps it is the new feudal system.

 

EJ should not be flip flopping between EJ to Miss M. If she were a tortured soul agonising between good and bad, it was not showing. And hissing her threats for 2/3 of the show

 

and I was always wondering what her revenge was. So she's taken back many things from HR who committed suicide at the site of her death, that's pretty good. Reversing the hanging seen was what I expected too, but having EJ regretting and jumping in as well, WTH?

 

HR had always been consistent with her SH oppa obsession and princess complex. I prefer her to go insane and keep SR company. 
 

BM and EG? Well what can I say?

SH is the constant lover but do you see him holding her hands, or any warmth towards her?  

 

Ciao everyone, greatly enjoy chatting. We got our revenge. 

 

[backstreetboysfan]

The ending was a little unclear. did they get happy ending or she go to jail?.

[maribella]

24 minutes ago, backstreetboysfan said:

The ending was a little unclear. did they get happy ending or she go to jail?.

They are going to investigate her but she has 'selective' amnesia, this is the open end. She and SH are together since they are moving into a 'care place'. Don't know what that is.

 

Did anyone expect EJ to commit suicide? There was no indication at all. Just like the Chairman being evil for 30 years.

 

 

[fragglerock]

@maribella  Actually I saw the suicide part coming admittingly, she was so caught up on revenge and not wanting her family to know even if they hated her, it was better than them knowing the horrible truth.  The problem is with revenge its a double edge sword you have to push everyone away from you so they dont influence you.  By the end she has got her revenge but also hurt everyone around her, if anything it was Bo MI I think it was who did the most damage.  She tried so hard to get her to turn back but eventually the words "Don't ever go back to being EJ" rang true to her I think, she knew it was hurting and pushing those around her further away, so in the end she threw herself off as well.

 

But the ending itself was weird, it didnt really overly fit the revenge plot line, especially being in bed and seeing hara etc, I understand what they were trying to do but the way it came together just didnt fit.

[youactlikeicare]

Final episode:

 

Since Hara died I feel like they would have never released the movie. But this is kdrama land where these things are possible. 

 

I'm surprised that HJ visits Step Mom in prison. Maybe it has to do with the fact that she is not in her right mind. HJ probably is the best person on this show.

 

I figured they were going the route of EG/BM. If they want to tack it on at the end, eh whatever. 

 

I don't like that she has selective amnesia, I was hoping she would recover all of her memories before the end...but no luck. But I guess if they wanted an ending that doesn't deal with how dark EJ got, this was the easy way. 

 

Also what is the long term plan. Is he going to abandon Hoon because he can't explain it to EJ. I mean are they planning on hiding the internet from her for all time. She at some point would be looking thing up. 

 

I guess the ending is supposed to be open ended like she will have love to pull her through, but we don't know how her criminal case will go. The ending is just okay, but it could have been worse. 

 

5 hours ago, LeftCoastOppa said:

In the end, I think I enjoyed this thread as much or more than the drama 

Agree 100%! (more)

[tiuserviu viu]

1 hour ago, youactlikeicare said:

 

I don't like that she has selective amnesia, I was hoping she would recover all of her memories before the end...but no luck. But I guess if they wanted an ending that doesn't deal with how dark EJ got, this was the easy way

Yes, same sentiments, why did they have to take the easy way.

 

A bit angry that SH didnt want EJ to know the past for her health and then later on he wants EJ to be investigated after getting out of the hospital?  Wouldnt she be traumatized more as she doesnt know.anything still? He should have waited more until she remembered and EJ should have been the one who surrendered. A timeskip ending would have been nicer....

I dont think the police would have minded to wait if she was just a witness or resource person unless they were given evidence of all of EJ revenge (but who had given them the info? SH? why would he when he didnt report HR or is it stepmom? but stepmom is already mental when she knew HR died...) OR how nice for the kdrama police to easily connect the dots at the end.

 

Pity that HR died where she should be in SR's place also... Even a HR in prison clothes like stepmom would be okay and off herself after. She got off easily on her own terms (knew about the posts beforehand) so no satisfaction of one upping her which didnt really make the revenge satisfying. And that ghost/dream sequence is really weird...(HR in a white dress? even in afterlife, she didnt suffer) HR had to be a ghost and suddenly want EJ to wake and be a good friend, she doesnt seem to regret anything even at the bridge, she was just happy to have EJ as a friend and regret losing EJ as a friend but did not apologize for her wrongdoings. The story did not really flesh out the events which should have led to this.

 

Also weird that they inserted a mr ju doppleganger with SH mom when talking about love... it is disrespect to the doppleganger if SH mom will only like him due to mr ju..

 

sorry but really dont like HJ  (bordering between neutral and slight dislike) haha even as CEO he seemed childish (and still leaving it to others to do things: mr park, and SH before they resigned from management) and still mooching off grandma and a bit obsessed with GH/EJ (2D form in the game, maybe obsession runs in their family?! they should have gotten at least one female employee for HJ in his company for his budding love interest) and HJ even followed SH/EJ in the ending?! weird if SH would tell 

HJ beforehand and not let him know of the plan to have EJ investigated as he looked confused/grave and he being there doesnt really do anything?

 

Why is there no update on Mr Wang and newmom? as all others (even hoon and the dead mr na and mr ju in doppleganger) has been shown. him smiling with newmom picture would suffice i think haha.

 

but finally the drama is finished. the ending is okayish (finally we got the revenge and finish this drama) but still bad storytelling wise and agree that following original monte cristo would be better. anyway, off to other dramas.

Edited July 3, 2021 by tiuserviu viu

[marrez1]

11 hours ago, Lmangla said:

watched raw and I was a bit confused. they just end with sirens in the background. am guessing it wasn't a happy ending though right? guess we will know with subs... 

Or, we can imagine that there was another murder where they are, it may be another signal that there will be another Miss Monte Cristo who may have been created

[tiuserviu viu]

3 minutes ago, marrez1 said:

we can imagine that there was another murder where they are, it may be another signal that there will be another Miss Monte Cristo who may have been created

i like this idea

Edited July 3, 2021 by tiuserviu viu

[tofumochu]

It speaks a lot when your fam chooses a pic y'all took from a forced editorial column family photoshoot for your burial placement... Hara never had a happy family to begin with. They never did any family activities together 'cause she was stuck in her own world deluded about her actress title. I don't get how she got nominated for best actress because she deserves no pity - a daughter (coming from corrupt/murderous backgrounds) chose her life over responsibility. And like a Cady once said "half of you are mad at me and the other half only liked me because they think I pushed someone over a bus". So who trolled and voted for her? Keyboard warriors? That movie's trailer seemed like a mess so I cannot understand how it was even released.

 

It sucks that all this... Eunjoo gets hit with the amnesia. Like for reals? 3 people in the drama concluded with altered/broken memories. Stepmom, Serin, and Eunjoo all mentally unavailable & live denying the events that took place. The only good here is that the chairman and stepmom are rotting in jail. I previously said it would suck for Eunjoo to end up with Sunhyuk - It sucks even more that they're together when her memories aren't even intact and he's suppressing all that info 'for her sake'. How you gonna explain to her you f'ed her bff and had a son together and now she's dead from suicide? Or you're gonna call Hoon her new Byul? So many unexplainable things on EJ's side.

 

For Hajoon, eh whatever. I'll let his side pass though low-key that unpaid rent just brings him back to Square 1 of an incompetent businessman. 

Eungyul and Bomi - Ok... if that makes them both happy.

Chosim - Still surprised that for most of the part she was a decent person.

Most of the side-background characters wrapped up fine except that mains.

 

 

Summary for this drama in less than 5 words: Forget it even happened.

 

 

 

[backstreetboysfan]

4 hours ago, maribella said:

They are going to investigate her but she has 'selective' amnesia, this is the open end. She and SH are together since they are moving into a 'care place'. Don't know what that is.

 

.

 

 

Oh okay, that is how I took it as well. I just wasn't 100% sure.

[Emily Bett]

I wasn't allowed to post here because I was moderating this thread in the last bit but now that it's done, I'd like to also say a few words.

 

It was interesting to see that every character that took their revenge also sought to turn themselves in and pay for their actions just as responsibly. I do wish that Sun Hyuk wouldn't have called the cops to pick up Eun Joo like that though, she's still recovering and I'm not sure how she'd react to the questioning, especially when she can't remember anything. I hope she never remembers anything, what's done is done and she deserves to finally live her life and recover the last few years which were taken from her. Not sure what the legal implications may be though, Eun Jo is legally dead and she's now Ga Eun but doesn't know it? Loads of loose ends that I don't really want to think of anymore.

 

If there's one thing I truly loved about this show, it was HR's moms outfits. OH LORD I NEED THERAPY AFTER 120 EPISODES OF THOSE OUTFITS. I don't know if the stylist should be fired or given an award for the clothes they put Kim Kyung Sook in but dang they truly provided a source of amusement throughout. Another thing that I also really liked was the pacing. The final few weeks were truly a marathon and there weren't many dull moments which I appreciated. Revenge dramas can get so slow and while Eun Joo did lose sight of moral boundaries and her goals, most of the villains got punished and luckily none of them were forgiven (A Good Supper, I'm looking at you ).

 

Anyways, it was fun reading all your comments and laughing along with the hilarious memes that you guys provided. See you in the next show!

[liyahsbutterfly]

What can I say?

This drama was definitely not the worst daily I've watched. Would I watch it again? Maybe, maybe not. 

It had its ups and downs, but it had a good beginning and fitting ending. The male leads irritated me to no end and I'm kinda glad that EJ didn't end up with them. Definitely some similarities with Temptation of Wife (like I pointed out in the beginning, on the original thread) but the ending wasn't the same. Not completely. 

I'd also like to point that I found it cool how Oh Hara was literally named after the famous actress Scarlett O'Hara and even quoted her in the last few episodes.

I found EG to be a very endearing character. I did like him. I felt bad for EJ's mom, though, she got treated so terribly by everyone, what she needed was help. BM was annoying too, but I guess she was just immature. SR, SR... she got a pretty sad ending, I won't lie. Being insane is worse than death. Grandma Han and BS were hilarious as always (even though I feel like Grandma could've been used more). Hara is dead and gone, but I found it weird how she was like an angel at the end considering all the terrible things she did, but ok. Evil Stepmom and Wicked Chairman got what they deserved. EJ's ending is truly tragic because we don't know what will happen to her. Those sirens were definitely for her. If she can't be investigated, she may be sent to a care home. 

All in all, a good drama with plenty of flaws. However- all the villains were rightfully punished and I liked how it explored the dark side of revenge. No forgiveness or quick write-off ending for anyone. Even Miss M got/will be getting her punishment too. All the loose ends were tied up.

It was lovely to watch this drama with you, chingus, now it's time to move on from this emotional tormenting mess of a rollercoaster. See y'all at the Red Shoes thread on Monday!

[Lmangla]

finally it is over! as usual, they forgot about hoon and the practicalities. so how will the existence of hoon be explained to eun joo? is he off in some boarding school and won't appear? 

 

so here is my take: disco oppa turned out to be the only real winner; he is finally at ease with his dysfunctional family, is doing a business that he loves and is back to dancing again! he is also at ease at having loved and lost as he feels he has gained by knowing that love exists. he is even wearing happy shirts. and cheers to the secretary team who stuck together and are now having fun in their new workplace. 

P.S ~ if you haven't done so already, vote for him in the heart thieves event (second leads of 2021),  pali pali! 

 

everyone else -- 

  

 

hahahhaa.... so sun hyuk blames himself for not noticing hara's obsessiveness. this means that he is forever going to be guilty as far as eun joo is concerned. no happy ending on that really. the prosecutor made it very clear that eun joo will be investigated once she wakes up and does not get a free pass. so what is this 'care facility' -- my translation -- jail!!!! or some mental institute for prisoners. basically she will end up in the care of the government for her crimes. having selective amnesia will not prevent her from being prosecuted -- stepmom also has selective amnesia. 

 

found it amusing that in the end, it wasn't sun hyuk that woke her up but hara! hahahahah... and after waking up, she still keeps asking about her friends. so destiny love is actually destiny toxic friendship. these 3 are forever linked. serin in a weird way got her happy ending at crazy farm -- she is happy and oblivious. so we can assume that eun joo will go the same route -- happy and oblivious unable to face up to what happened. sun hyuk will visit her on the weekends till hoon grows up and becomes a teenager and throws tantrums. or she will die of brain damage before he grows up and never know about him. the end. 

[maribella]

@Lmangla I think SH said he was going to move to a care something. I believe the two of them will live quietly together. A judge will find her unfit to stand trial.

 

There are ridiculous moments just to achieve this crime- punishment - redemption arc. 
 

Anyway it's a lot better than Temptation of Wife @chococarmela imho. That show left me in stitches at the end. The husband is an idiot  husband in A good supper.

[Lmangla]

33 minutes ago, maribella said:

@Lmangla I think SH said he was going to move to a care something. I believe the two of them will live quietly together. A judge will find her unfit to stand trial.

so will hoon get abandoned forever?  sun hyuk said hoon was the only meaningful thing to come out of his twisted relationship with hara. he has also consistently said that as long as he has hoon, it does not matter. he has been an annoying mopey lead but has been shown as a father who will put his child first. so yea, eun joo will move to care is translation for jail. the prosecutor didn't seem to feel sorry for her that she was sick. the writer has shown with both mr wang and deok gyu that you have to pay for your actions even if you think you are justified. so eun joo cannot get a free pass as she orchestrated everything. her hands are not clean. she just doesn't have to face it mentally as she is not really there...  sun hyuk ends with "thank you for letting me love you again" and ha joon also does a similar spiel. both men were saying goodbye. hajun looked alarmed at hearing the siren while sun hyuk looked super sad. if it is a care facility, why would they react that way? so yea, jail time or care facility for criminals it is.