Between Desire and Conscience: Dong Hoon’s Deliverance

@actionscript gives his perspective on Dong Hoon’s narrative arc and why it matters.

“When he is caught between desire and conscience, he always leans towards the latter.” Thus speaks Ki Hoon of his brother Dong Hoon in episode 1, and these words introduce us to the kind of man our protagonist is. I’d say it’s quite consistent with the image that Dong Hoon had exhibited in the first few scenes – in how gentle he was with the ladybug, and in how dutiful he was as a brother to both Sang Hoon and Ki Hoon. But Ki Hoon follows up those words with a seemingly ominous declaration: “I pity him the most.”

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Hands: Telling the Story

One thing I noticed during a re-watch was how often PDnim focuses on hands. He portrays an emotion and tells a story just by having us look at a character’s hands, and through this he encourages us to keep paying attention.

Episode 4 Deconstructed: Sang Hoon’s Shame

by @justamom

I just finished Episode 4 and after sobbing and laughing then sobbing again…I realised this: Episode 1-2 were thrilling and exciting and made me think it was some kind of thriller/corporate mystery.  But episode 4 was when the show sank its claws into me. And I didn’t even realise it then, because it was done so, so subtly through the use of wiretapping/flashbacks.

EPISODE 4 IS A STORY IN ITSELF: Sang Hoon’s Shame

I just want to deconstruct how the writer did it because she built up the tension and suspense so beautifully until that dramatic climax.

Overall Theme: Rebirth

I think the overall theme is rebirth, kind of like shedding the old skin by a snake, or the old feathers like an eagle. The eagle experiences extreme pain while removing the old feathers but grows back a plume that allows it to fly even higher. The characters don’t have to die physically for this… ~ by @africandramalover

Kindness itself can be radical

Some might say that Dong Hoon’s integrity and kindness is a sign of weakness, but @chickfactor thinks that that’s precisely what sets him apart

Dong Hoon’s Middle Way

Jung Hee and Gyum Duk (the monk friend) seem to represent two extremes in Buddhist philosophy – sensual self-indulgence and self-mortification, respectively – while Dong Hoon represents the “middle way”, as @maddymappo and @h2ogirl explain.

Ji An = Female Version of Monk Friend?

@noor1 from Soompi is our resident most objective viewer. She started out standing outside the romantic ship until the moment she had not choice but to jump ship because she logically followed where the show led her. Then she was in heart and soul, but never at the expense of checking her brains at the door 🙂  We love @noor1 and her “amusing pessimism.” (as @h2ogirl calls it)  Here are her thoughts after the conclusion of the show, in chronological order.  Do you agree with her that Ji An is just a female version of Dong Hoon’s monk best friend and nothing more?

Jung Hee Deserves All the Love, All the Million Roses

~ An appreciation post for our Jung Hee Eonni by Soompiers ~

A Realistic Drama with Realistic Relationships

The Weight of What We Carry

Translated by @rellea from Soompi 

Original DC Inside post here. All credit for images goes to the original poster.

It may be going a bit too far to say that every prop, background, screen layout, etc. have meaning, but when something is shown repeatedly and continuously, we can assume that it was deliberately inserted by the director in order to convey a message.