I always find it funny, the way I get so anxious for a drama OTP to get together. I always feel like the world’s going to end if they don’t hurry up and realize their feelings for each other, even though I know that as soon as they do, something awful is going to happen that will ultimately drive them apart. It’s just one of those terrible drama laws that you can never really escape which is why I was so worried about Bok Joo, Joon Hyung and their fledgling relationship in these next two episodes.
Lucky for me (and really all of us who have been cheering for our adorable OTP), the conflict that arises between our leading characters isn’t something so devastating they can’t find a way to work things out. Sure, Bok Joo suffered from a pretty serious bout of jealousy which, in turn, frustrated Joon Hyung to no end but by the end of the episode, things had been resolved between them. Once again I’m in awe of just how uncharacteristically realistic these two are in their relationship. Their feelings for one another stem from a beautifully healthy friendship, which has enabled to build on that solid foundation, a relationship in which issues can be addressed and problems can be solved without there being any real danger of them breaking up. Of course if Bok Joo can’t get over her habitual lying, things might change… (Seriously, Bok Joo! It’s just a pimple! Not the end of the world!) But for now Joon Hyung seems to be pretty forgiving. Oh the joys of living in that rosy pink world of new love! *sigh*
While things have worked out surprisingly well for Bok Joo and Joon Hyung, they still have some issues they’re going to have to address before their relationship can really take off. We all know that one of these days, Bok Joo is going to have to break the news to her dad and uncle and that’s probably not going to go over so well. Daddy Dearest has made it pretty clear that he doesn’t want his daughter focusing on anything other than weightlifting. I’m pretty sure he’s going to have a flipping cow when he finds out Bok Joo is dating. I just hope he doesn’t throw another one of his childish tantrums or suffer from completely kidney failure, once the news breaks. Ugh! That would suck! At least Dae Ho 삼촌 has already told Joon Hyung that he approves of him, and has even taken to calling him nephew-in-law, but that doesn’t mean that he’ll actually be okay with Bok Joo dating. Especially not now that his own dating live has fallen apart.
Poor 삼촌! I know he’s really brought this heartbreak on himself, but I still can’t help but feel sorry for him. I think he really did like Coach Choi, in his own way, but his stubborn refusal to listen to her anytime she tried to explain her true feelings, made me think he was really hanging onto her more for his own sake than anything. I think Dae Ho is really a very lonely guy and he just wants someone around who will give him the affection he craves. Yes, he has his family and they all love him, but the combined stress of caring for his brother and helping run the chicken shop and watching out for Bok Joo has to be wearing on him. He really needs a place where he can escape once in a while, he needs someone he can confide in, someone who can offer him love and support outside of confines of his daily life. When he thought Coach Choi could be that source of comfort, he latched onto it with all his might. The sad thing is, he latched onto the wrong person and now his heart is broken.
It seems kind of odd to me that while Joon Hyung and Bok Joo’s relationship is thriving, everyone else’s in this story is falling apart. Jae Yi and Ah Young are another couple whose relationship has taken a turn towards the frigid. I know that Ah Young told Jae Yi that she was done wasting her time on a man who can’t return her feelings but I never suspected her to be so cold towards him. You’d think a 10 year friendship would at least allow them to stay friendly but I guess when you’ve loved someone one-sidedly for so long, you kind of have to cut him out of your life completely if you’re even going to have a hope of getting over him. While it seems to me quitting your job and moving to another city to work with your family is a bit dramatic, I suppose that’s really the only way Ah Young can make her point. My question is, will this really be the end of everything she and Jae Yi have together or will this be the catalyst that finally spurs Jae Yi into action? I know that he’s been attempting to woo Ah Young with his half-hearted, “well, we’re already friends and I don’t wanna lose that so let’s date” nonsense but c’mon! We all know that kind of crap is never going to work! Jae Yi needs to stop being so darn neutral all the time and start living his life with some sort of passion. Even if he decides he doesn’t really have any romantic feelings for Ah Young, he needs to find something in his life that he can actually be passionate about. He has all these amazing talents, and all of this potential, and yet, he spends his days doing what? What is it in his life that actually drives him? What is it he’s actually passionate about? He spends his days living this nice little quiet life, which is fine, but there’s no fire in him. There’s no drive or motivation to explore life beyond the confines of his own little comfortable bubble. Everything he does in life is nice and perfect and polite and fine but he never moves beyond that. It’s this maddening complacency that has forced Ah Young to make such drastic decisions. She’s tired of the nice and she has enough of her own inner fire to stand up and say, “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!” I respect that about her. I just hope a little of her fire spreads to Jae Yi, otherwise he’s going to spend his entire life being perfectly nice and completely alone.
As frustrated as I am with Jae Yi, I’m happy to say that my frustration and rather strong dislike of Song Shi Ho has finally disappeared. It’s sad that it took an overdose of sleeping pills and a multi-day stay in the hospital to wake her up and make her realize she’d been living as a total (insert strong word of choice here) her entire life; but at least she finally got there. I’m actually really happy that she’s been able to make peace with both Joon Hyung and Bok Joo. Admitting she’d been in the wrong and apologizing for it wasn’t something I ever thought she’d be able to admit but not that she has, and has stopped being so awful, she’s actually proven herself to be a rather nice person. She’s strong and determined and she has enough courage to admit that she’s reached the end of her career and has even gone so far as to admit that there may actually be life beyond her sport. I know it’s going to be very hard for her to adjust to life outside the world of competition, and she’s going to have a lot of issues to deal with, especially when it comes to the state of her family and the guilt she’s going to bear, but she’s taken several very big steps in the right direction. I believe that with time, and a whole lot of counseling, she’ll be able to live a full, rich and rewarding life.
There were a lot of ups and downs in this episode, from Professor Yoon begging for Coach Choi’s reinstatement, to his quitting, to the weightlifting department going on a hunger strike, to both the professor and Coach Choi returning to their old positions, a whole lot happened. And that doesn’t even include all of the personal drama! We finally got Coach Choi to confess her feelings for the Professor. Bok Joo and Joon Hyung finally admitted they’re dating to their friends, which cost Joon Hyung dearly. Honestly, I can’t understand why he had to buy everyone food. So what if he and Bok Joo kept their relationship a secret? It’s not like they suddenly announced they were getting married or anything. What’s the big deal about dating anyway? Is it really such a crime for people who like each other to date? Why make Joon Hyung suffer like that? It seems like such a petty and extremely selfish thing to do. I mean really, I’ve never once thought I needed my friends to buy me food, just because they started dating someone. Maybe that’s one of those things about Korean culture that I’ll just never understand. I don’t really know. All I know is, announcing a new relationship shouldn’t be something people are punished for, even if they did choose to keep it a secret at first. Sometimes, when things are precious, you just want to keep it to yourself for a while. Not because you’re never going to share it with those you love, but because you just need some time to process it and treasure it and nurture it and let it develop a bit before you share it with the world. It makes sense that Bok Joo and Joon Hyung would want to do that with their relationship before they share the news with their friends and family.
Speaking of family… Why the heck did Joon Hyung’s birth mom have to show up out of the blue like that? I mean really! You know she’s not going to bring anything but trouble and so help me, if she hurts Joon Hyung more than she already has, I’m going to find a way to transport myself to DramaLand and hunt her down myself! That poor kid has suffered enough in his life because of her. He doesn’t need her showing up now, especially not when he’s been making such positive progress! Again this proves that drama characters are nothing but selfish jerks and I really hope this woman doesn’t stick around for long. She needs to do whatever it is she’s been brought in to do and then leave. F-O-R-E-V-E-R!
It’s seems that with Joon Hyung’s mom showing up now, there’s going to be quite a bit we’re going to have to rush through in these last two episodes. I’m really hoping that all of these characters can find their own sort of happiness by the end. With the way this drama has gone, I’m willing to bet that they will. The question is, how much more nonsense are we going to have to deal with before they finally get to that happy ending? I suppose there’s really only one way to find out… Episodes 15-16, here I come!
You can catch up on all of my Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo reviews here: