I can’t believe we’ve come to the end of this drama already! For the most part I’d say it’s been an enjoyable past eight weeks but there were a few things that didn’t quite sit right with me at the end.
For starters, I love that Joo Eun and Young Ho get to live happily ever after. I’m stoked beyond words that Young Ho’s grandma didn’t give them any trouble, that Young Ho’s dad just went quietly along with everything without ever asking a question or raising a stink. I love that Joo Eun is able to bring laughter into a house that probably hasn’t heard anything so happy in over three decades but there are some things here that just don’t quite jive and Joo Eun’s hypothyroidism is one of them. I’m sorry but hypothyroidism isn’t something you can instantly be cured of just because you change your diet and start to exercise. It’s a condition that goes way beyond that and I hate how it was just tossed to the side as if it were never a major thing to begin with. (I’m also irked that they tossed her glasses away because they detracted from her beauty but that happened ages ago and it’s really more of a personal thing. I happen to wear glasses and I don’t appreciate being told I’m ugly because I have to wear them in order to see, but whatever. I’ll just be ugly. It’s okay. Really.)
As happy as I was with Young Ho being able to fight a disease as serious as cancer and come out the victor on the other side, I was a bit disappointed in the way Joo Eun brushed off his fears about having children. Having experienced life with a cancer survivor and a pregnancy that happened post-cancer treatments I can tell you the fear that comes along with that is very real as is the fear that your children may some day inherit the same disease as their father, no matter how small the odds of that ever happening are. This is not an issue Joo Eun should have taken so lightly and though I agree with her speech about not being afraid to live in the moment for fear of what might happen in the future, that still doesn’t make up for the fact that Joo Eun was so caught up in the moment she chose to ignore the very real and legitimate fears of the man she loves. (I feel my inner Captain Hook yelling, “Bad form, Joo Eun! Bad form!)
Adding to my list of gripes with this show’s ending was the completely unnecessary drama we had to endure between Woo Shik and Soo Jin. I mean really. These two have already put us through enough drama, why do we have to watch them putz around more than they already have? What was the point of telling us Soo Jin might not be able to have children? Who cares? I’m more concerned with the fact she’s been starving herself for the majority of this show and no one has bothered to say anything about it. Ummm… Hello people! Starvation is not an acceptable form of dieting, no matter how desperate you are. For a show that’s supposed to be about making smart choices and living a healthy lifestyle, they certainly dropped the ball on this one. Blaming Soo Jin’s antidepressants for her infertility, rather than addressing the underlying issues doesn’t solve a darn thing. The woman needs counseling and a good meal more than she needs to have children so why don’t we address those issues first? I’m sure this is going to sound cruel and awful but not being able to have children isn’t the end of the world. Adoption is always an option though honestly, some people really aren’t cut out for parenthood and it’s better for everyone if they just don’t. You’re not less of a human if you don’t reproduce. Just FYI.
So as not to be a complete Debbie Downer, I’ll just voice this one last gripe and then move on. I am beyond upset that Joon Sung ended up with Yi Jin. I mean I knew it was going to happen but that didn’t lessen the blow any. This chick was nothing short of a psycho stalker the entire show and essentially we’re being told that it’s okay to go all sasaeng on a person because eventually they’ll fall for you and you’ll get to live happily ever after with the oppa (or unni) of your dreams. Ugh! This is wrong on so many levels it almost makes me sick.
Oh the upside, we did get a lot of warm-fuzzy (borderline smokin’ hot) moments with Young Ho and Joo Eun. Young Ho’s proposal was adorable, even if I did find myself wondering how the heck Joo Eun never noticed there was something more to that odd ball dangling off her scarf. But whatever. My beloved OTP found their happily ever after, their proposal was magical and their wedding photo shoot was adorable. I don’t know how the heck they managed to convince Chief Min to be a part of the shoot but I’m so glad they did. It was the perfect way to wrap things up and I loved it so much. (Now to find a way to switch places with Joo Eun so I can be the princess surrounded by a quartet of handsome princes… Hey, a zombie can dream!)
I know I have a lot of gripes about this ending but in all honesty, I really enjoyed this drama. For the most part it was a lot of fun to watch and the OTP was just so cute! Sure, they had their moments when I questioned their sanity (as in spending that dumb year apart… still not over that one) but it all ended well enough (minus the jabs at Joo Eun for gaining weight during her pregnancy… with twins! Seriously, the writers show no mercy, do they?). I suppose if there weren’t so many situations in this drama that have actually played out in my own life, I would have found less to be picky about. Too much of this drama hit close to home and it sometimes struck a nerve that wasn’t all that pleasant. I guess that goes to show wishing your life was more like a drama isn’t always a good thing. Or maybe it’s more the other way around and living a drama-filled life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be… I’m not really sure.
Whatever the case may be, I think it’s time for me to wrap things up and so I turn the conversation over to you. I want to know your thoughts on these last two episodes. Did things end up the way you wanted them to? Was there anything that took you by surprise? Anything you wish would have played out differently? You know I always love hearing from you so be sure to let me know what you think in the comments below!
Overall it ended well. I’ve been vocal in my dislike of YiJin, so I have to agree with you that I didn’t like that her craziness won out in the end. I also didn’t like that they made JooEun put on so much weight in her face and put back on her glasses to indicate that she had reverted to her old self. For goodness sake! Her husband had only been away only a month and she was pregnant with twins. She had spent two years making a true commitment to good health. Why eiuld you act like being pregnancy negates her healthy lifestyle?? She should have been made to look like a beautiful, sexy, pregnant woman, not treated as if she’d “let herself go”. Why get rid of her dimples and pack weight on her face? I didn’t think that the message sent was right.
I really didn’t think she trivialized Yoing Ho’s concerns. She listened, told him she’d looked into it and told him how she felt about it. I didn’t find her to be pushy. She gave him room to keep the discussion going. She just let him know that she wasn’t afraid and was willing to take the risk. Maybe I read it wrong. (My husband, too, is a cancer survivor.) I do agree that these are the conversations couples need to have and both need to be in agreement. In real life it might have required weeks of conversations, but in a drama they don’t have that kind of time so it felt rushed.
I really liked that Young Ho’s stepmom and brother were reunited with his dad. It was the right thing to do…although how they will work out living arrangements is a bit sketchy.
Soo Jin was sick on many levels. She was not taking care of herself. She starved herself, drank too much, mixed liquor and antidepressants, then quit antidepressants without ever dealing with any of her issues. She needed an intervention, not a proposal. She needs some serious help before she can be a healthy partner on any level. I feel pity for her. She never grew at all.
Young Ho and Joo Eun’s photo shoot was my favorite part of the last two episodes. It does not get much cuter than that.
All in all it was a good drama. I’m glad that the grandma didn’t create issues in the last episode and we got a happy ending.
I’m so with you on the whole pregnant Joo Eun thing. Why in the world did they portray her as, essentially, a fat slob when she’s pregnant with twins? Being pregnant doesn’t mean you give up your healthy lifestyle! In fact, it’s the exact opposite! On top of that, the weight you gain when you’re pregnant is gained for a reason, it’s not just pointless fat. Heck, most of it isn’t fat at all! Of course a woman’s body changes both during and after pregnancy but it’s supposed to. You can expect a woman to go through all the trauma of pregnancy and childbirth and come out unscathed. That’s just ridiculous! I found that whole final scene at the airport to be disappointing, mostly because it painted pregnant women in such a poor light. I could rant about this for a very long time but I won’t. Just know I was/am irked.
Like you, I liked that Young Ho’s stepmom and brother were reunited with his dad. As you said, it was the right thing to do and I’m happy it happened. I’m kind hoping the three of them will move out of Grandma’s house and start living the kind of life they should have been living all along.
You’re right about Soo Jin. She needs help and no amount of wooing on Woo Sik’s part is going to make her better. She has some very serious issues that need to be dealt with but they were brushed under the rug, rather than addressed, so she’s left to suffer for all of eternity.
The photo shoot was my favorite part as well. It demonstrated the excellent chemistry between the cast and just made me happy. I also enjoyed the outtakes at the end. They made me laugh.
All in all, it was a good drama and one I’ve spent the last 8 weeks ridiculously addicted to. Even with my petty gripes, the drama was a lot of fun to watch and one I’d definitely recommend to others.