Ending

[galacticchick]

I was a bit disappointed with the ending. It followed every bland formula there is.

And just when we were taking about unresolved plot lines, what was the whole deal w/Tae-il and his liver? He's shameless to not try and get cured because he should at least live to feed Jihong.

I give it a

[buddhacat]

Yes, the ending was pretty predictable, but oh well, that's just how these things are.

As to Tae-Il and the liver, that was pretty weird. I can only rationalize it as a fatalistic comment on the unknown directions that life takes us.

In real life, this liver problem probably would have been detected at the time he was preparing to donate one of his kidneys and so that whole plot line would have been shot.

Or......(see the evil grin on my face right now) ...watch for the sequel where Tae-Il qualifies for a liver transplant and Mr. Oh or Hun Kyu or our ultimate hero Min Jae donates a portion of his own liver and everyone lives happily ever after.

So what's next?

[birb]

galacticchick said:

I was a bit disappointed with the ending. It followed every bland formula there is.

And just when we were taking about unresolved plot lines, what was the whole deal w/Tae-il and his liver? He's shameless to not try and get cured because he should at least live to feed Jihong.

I give it a

I myself thought the ending was very bland.

I give it two

Birb

[tata]

For me this drama could have ended with MJ seeing his birthfather off at the airport. The final eps was like eating an eggroll without hot mustard, very bland. ;D

[Lovely]

I think that the ending could have been better. I wish there was like a fast forward towards the end to maybe 5 years later or something. I wanted OMR to end with all the characters around each other, say for a family picnic, and of course YJ and MJ's child as well as HR and HK's child too. I just wanted to see how things have worked out years later, especially Soon-ok and Tae-ho's relationship! Overall, I think it was a great show!

[Lucy]

I'm going to disagree with everyone who's posted so far and say that it was a good ending for the series, given what went before. Granted, the episode was nothing more than a lovefest, which was emphatically underlined by the pictures over the closing credits--they were pictures taken from throughout the course of the series and consisted of everyone's happiest moments. But because the overarching theme of the series was the important of forgiveness and family--and how, when your family is divided, nothing is right--it was appropriate to have the last episode show celebrate family togetherness.

I liked it! And not just because we had one final "Min-jae in bed" scene.

As for the liver thing, well, I agree that it was weird to leave it hanging. (Hanging liver? Eww, sounds painful!) I guess the idea is that "into every life a little rain must fall" (meaning the lives of the Park family and their relatives), but that Tae-il had finally been able to forgive himself and now accepts his fate, whatever it might be. BTW, I don't think there's a way to get better from cirrhosis of the liver--that's when your liver structure is damaged by some chronic, progressive condition. So says my dictionary.

[jenny]

I almost feel guilty I enjoyed the happy ending now! Although it felt like everything was wrapped up too fast, everyone gets pregnant and whe don't know what happens with Soon-ok and Tae-ho. I would have liked to see a 5 year FF too.

I liked the way the Rainbow (calling her that for the last time) left, not lovey-dovey and forgiving everyone, but still on a happy note. But why would Soon-young want to have her over for dinner after the mess she caused? "I know you tried to ruin our family but please enjoy some kalbi before you go!" A little too forgiving there.

That Tae-il thing was weird, I was afraid they'd do a fast forward and he'd be dead, with his family remembering him fondly at the Oh family picnic. As for it being discovered before the transplant, buddhacat is right. I know I've mentioned it a hundred times before, but when my mom donated her kidney to my dad she had to go through rigorous testing to make sure she was healthy, and they discovered she had high liver enzymes. She had to see a gastroentrologist (sp?) to clear her to donate (turns out that she does have liver disease, but it's in a very early stage so there isn't much scarring. It was caught before there were any symptoms!). Tae-il's would have been caught, and instead of donating a kidney he'd have been put on a liver transplant waiting list!! Which would have ruined the plot.

I'm gonna miss this show, though. I really enjoyed it after Hyun-kyu's ane Hye-ran's wedding, because we hardly ever saw Hye-ran! Only cooking HK's breakfast. If you ask me , they should have spent more time on everyone else and focused less on the HK/HR thing. It almost seems like they figured that out at the end.

Oh, well. This drama had great fashion, plenty of pink and rose-hued everything (actresses' makeup, HK and HR's house, clothes and ties) and most importantly, LEE CHANG HOON!!! I'll miss you, Min-jae! I enjoyed it!

[Lucy]

One thing that just occurred to me: This drama was named One Million Roses. We know why it was called that (because of what HK said to HR that one time), but it sure didn't turn out to have any significance to the overall drama, did it? If they were the main couple, and their love was the only focal point, I could maybe see it, but there was the almost more important MJ/Oh family plot and all the stuff about forgiveness.

Overall, though I really enjoyed watching this drama, it let me down many times and showed an inexpert touch. The awkwardness of the title is just one example.

[jenny]

Yes, it was far from perfect. More like eye candy!

[Lucy]

Definitely eye candy. You're right about that. It's fun to watch rich TV people when they're not ostentatious (cf Dynasty)--they just are very comfortable and have expensive things. Great escapism for me. Plus, there was one particular piece of eye candy in that candy-box on which you will, of course, agree with me . . .

[qingzongma]

I missed the final episode. Can anyone tell me what the EA said to Hyran at the end? Thanks.

[jenny]

Sure. EA said the ep. before that she was praying for HK's and HR's unhappiness, but in the begining of the final ep. she said they have to be happy to prove her wrong. Then she asked HR to promise her that they'd be happy, and she did. Hye-ran also told EA that she was pregnant, and EA thanked her for telling her. I'm sorry, that's all I remember! Maybe someone else can add?

Lucy said:

Plus, there was one particular piece of eye candy in that candy-box on which you will, of course, agree with me . . .

Yes, my favorite flavor! ;D Fannie May would still be in business if they sold that by the pound!!!

[JadeEyes]

I've been out of touch for a while, sorry. I just moved and we didn't have internet connection for several days. There were even a few days at the end of June/beginning of July that I missed OMR -- we couldn't find the antenna in all the packed boxes and I didn't even have a spare minute to run out and buy another. I missed the episodes in which Peter Kang was introduced and met w/ Min-jae to reveal himself and make his demands. I pretty much picked up on what went on just by watching the next episodes.

Anyway, I didn't think the end was too bad. I did wonder about the family photo portrait scene -- that was the same ending that Yellow Handkerchief used. The only other Korean drama I've seen through to the end is Bodyguard, which had a freeze frame ending as the protagonist started off running. I'm just curious if the family portrait photo ending is common or popular with the contemporary dramas. Has anyone who has seen other Korean dramas tell me if they've seen this ending before? I do find it strange to see a repeat of an ending, at least in substance even if the particulars are different. This is especially so for copying the end of Yellow Handkerchief, a recent and high-rated Korean drama.

Actually, I didn't feel that Tae-il's story was left hanging very much at all. It seemed clear to me that he may not be long for this world -- cirrhosis of the liver can take years to kill someone -- but that he's very much at peace with this reality and from his words to Hye-sung, he's enjoying his life at present more than he ever has before and feels he's gotten a lot out of life. He's made peace with the people he's wronged, received forgiveness, has made amends to his family and lived to see his children find success and happiness and to see them and their mother rise out of poverty.

As for Ji-hong, I'm sure it will be hard for him to lose his adopted father after bonding with him so deeply and after all his other losses. But it seems clear to me he'll be ok -- he now has a large, extended family to look out for and after him and I don't see him wanting for anything.

I also got the sense that Soon-ok and Tae-ho will get together, but they went for the comic ending w/ those 2 that seems fitting for them, since they've always been pretty much the characters of comic relief.

And I think it's enough to know Hye-ran and Yu-jin will become mothers before a year is out...I didn't feel a need to see them with their babies. It's enough, IMO, to know that married life is working out for both couples and bringing all the fruits they've dreamed of and longed for, and also that both couples have full acceptance from the entire family. My word, the grandmother certainly experienced a complete 180, didn't she? Well, it was nice to see, if not terribly realistic.

I'm glad the aunt left w/ her usual sour tidings -- if she reformed it would've been too much -- though it does seem there was an underlying tone of softened resentment at the very last. Maybe she'll come around eventually, who knows? But I do agree w/ those who say it's absurd anyone in the Oh family should be wishing her well, longing to court her good wishes or seek her forgiveness. Why do any of them owe her an apology or feel a need to be forgiven by her? If anyone should be begging forgiveness of anyone, Aunt Rainbow should be on her knees to her nephew and his family for their forgiveness. She tried to destroy the entire family for nothing more than pure revenge over something really stupid. Now maybe I wouldn't strike back at her gratuitously just to hurt her, but I surely would not welcome her into my home or feel I owe her an apology or seek her forgiveness. The bunch of them are a little twisted in that regard, if you ask me. But maybe it's a cultural thing.

All in all, I enjoyed this drama moderately well -- a lot more than I thought I would watching the first dozen or so episodes. I'm glad I stuck it out and let myself get into it. I still wouldn't rate it as high as Yellow Handkerchief, but still I give it high marks. It got interensting and kept me hooked and wanting more (until the last week or so when I was ready for it to wrap up) and the characters were diverse and interesting. Good acting, too, as is always the case with Korean dramas.

I'm curious now to see what the next drama will be like and am hoping I'll want to see it. I really will feel a void now if I don't have a Korean drama to wait for and watch 5 evenings a week! I guess that makes me an official daruma addict.

Jade

[Soju]

qingzongma -

She said, "I wish you unhappiness. Please prove me wrong".

I agree with most of what's been said in this thread. Kind of weak, but everything was wrapped up nicely. Not as good as "So This Is Love" or "Yellow Handkerchief", but much better than the ending of "to Be With You", where I was left wondering, "What about this character, and that character."

All in all, I'd give this show an A-, or a B+ at the least.

[jenny]

JadeEyes said:

Anyway, I didn't think the end was too bad. I did wonder about the family photo portrait scene -- that was the same ending that Yellow Handkerchief used. The only other Korean drama I've seen through to the end is Bodyguard, which had a freeze frame ending as the protagonist started off running. I'm just curious if the family portrait photo ending is common or popular with the contemporary dramas. Has anyone who has seen other Korean dramas tell me if they've seen this ending before? I do find it strange to see a repeat of an ending, at least in substance even if the particulars are different. This is especially so for copying the end of Yellow Handkerchief, a recent and high-rated Korean drama.

Yes, it's very common! In almost every daily drama I've seen it ends with a family portrait, and I think I've seen nearly 10 daily dramas on KBC 28.