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Post by Lucy on May 19, 2006 12:24:28 GMT -5
Well, I never thought I'd see the day when I'd cry for Bongku, who has served as quasi-comic relief up till now. (Well, not quite, but we've never been encouraged to take him seriously.) But when he had his talk with Kyungsook last night (episode 19) about his loving her and her loving Jongkyu, well, I was in tears. Poor guy. The actor did a great job, too, with all that frustrated, silent lead-up to talking about his feelings.
Then, when the political tide turned and the bad guys got punished, I was so happy I clapped my hands. Finally, something good happened to the good guys! That poor little family of Kyungsook's has been haunted for years and years by her father's framing for the murder and by everything that's come from it. However, putting together some hints in the previews and the younger brother's nosebleed, I'm afraid something is going to be revealed about his health. I can't remember exactly what was in the preview that made me think that, but I'm worried about him now.
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Post by CaptVunplugged on May 19, 2006 15:18:01 GMT -5
Well, I never thought I'd see the day when I'd cry for Bongku, who has served as quasi-comic relief up till now. (Well, not quite, but we've never been encouraged to take him seriously.) But when he had his talk with Kyungsook last night (episode 19) about his loving her and her loving Jongkyu, well, I was in tears. Poor guy. The actor did a great job, too, with all that frustrated, silent lead-up to talking about his feelings. I know what you mean, I've been there before, many times, and it's not fun.... Then, when the political tide turned and the bad guys got punished, I was so happy I clapped my hands. Finally, something good happened to the good guys! That poor little family of Kyungsook's has been haunted for years and years by her father's framing for the murder and by everything that's come from it. Again, I know what you mean, when Chairman Park went to visit his brother-in-law at the hospital and asked, "How could anyone do this to a fellow human being?", I was clapping and yelling that the brother-in-law knows precisely how someone could do that to a fellow human being.[/quote] However, putting together some hints in the previews and the younger brother's nosebleed, I'm afraid something is going to be revealed about his health. I can't remember exactly what was in the preview that made me think that, but I'm worried about him now. I don't know about his health, but he appeared to be about to receive a nasty beating on the street from a couple of soldiers.....
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Post by gpaul on May 19, 2006 19:30:59 GMT -5
The previews did make it seem like there is more bad stuff to happen to the family. There are 11 more episodes, I hope that life gets better for them, they deserve it. Lucy I also felt sorry for Bongku. What a beautiful performance he gave, but then when I saw her in the arms of the man she loves (of course I can't think of his name) I was so happy for them. Does anyone think that they will get together at the end. It seems as though everyone in this drama has an impossible love.
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Post by dramakaren on May 20, 2006 10:30:50 GMT -5
They have not given Kyung-min (younger brother) much of a story line. I would hate for him to get sick, but if he does, its finally a story for him. They could of done so much more with his character. Glad to see others are still watching with me.
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Post by CaptVunplugged on May 20, 2006 11:48:52 GMT -5
Glad to see others are still watching with me. So, what else would we be watching, According to Jim, or one of the other fine offerings from the networks that sent me surfing in the first place and led me to this wonderful oasis of fine entertainment and useful information? I love this show, not just for the fine story and wonderful acting, but there has been so much cultural information about South Korea in this period that I would most likely have never known due to my extreme aversion to reading. Forgive my rant and keep watching!
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Post by gpaul on May 20, 2006 19:35:20 GMT -5
I love this show too, and I agree that I am learning so much about a country that I knew nothing about, except from watching "Mash".
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Post by dramakaren on May 20, 2006 19:52:46 GMT -5
So, what else would we be watching, According to Jim, or one of the other fine offerings from the networks that sent me surfing in the first place and led me to this wonderful oasis of fine entertainment and useful information? I love this show, not just for the fine story and wonderful acting, but there has been so much cultural information about South Korea in this period that I would most likely have never known due to my extreme aversion to reading. Forgive my rant and keep watching! The story line is a Little weak, but the acting keeps me watching. Maybe to many characters to write about.... It is nice to learn about some of the history, like you said. Not to much history for a drama, just enough for us drama fans. No need to apologize for your post, you can "rant" all you want, I might actually lean something for your nice writings. When you read mine, it must be like the sound of nails on a chalkboard.
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Post by dramakaren on May 20, 2006 20:06:50 GMT -5
I love this show too, and I agree that I am learning so much about a country that I knew nothing about, except from watching "Mash". LOL,LOL
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Post by Lucy on May 22, 2006 12:29:58 GMT -5
I'm not sure I agree that the story line is weak. I say this in the spirit not of disagreement but of discussion. What I appreciate most about this show is the sense of drama that permeates everything, and that drama, for me, derives from the one great sin that was committed against the father of Kyungsook's family. Everything else comes from that. It's like a Greek tragedy played out against the backdrop of a dark time in Korea's history. I love the way the politics feeds into the ongoing troubles that afflict the family. The people who harmed them are now receiving retribution, not from the children but from the changing political system that once facilitated the wrongs they committed. It's all really sad, though, because nothing can undo what was done to those kids, and they live with the consequences every day.
I also like how it shows how Kyungsook holds the family together through her material sacrifices. She's a great character because she's sort of an archetype and not much else. We don't really know that much about her, but what we know is that she works very hard and is incredibly protective, strong, and loyal. Her life is limited, but that's because, IMO, she's like an immigrant parent in the sense that she basically sacrifices her own fulfillment for those who come after--her younger brothers. I think that her time is coming, though, now that Jongkyu is back. Maybe their eventual coming together (I hope) will bring all the elements together in a way that Hongyeon and Kyungju (I hope I have all those names right) could not, since they, too, represent the "enemy" families.
One interesting thing I noticed is that, unlike in many other dramas, there is no personal point of view. People's feelings are not closely examined, and we don't know what anyone in particular is thinking. It's an ensemble piece with a detached viewpoint. Compare other dramas, like "Winter Sonata" or "Hello, God," where you understood a couple of the characters very well and the plot hinged on their fates or their happiness.
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Post by dkaren on May 23, 2006 18:03:04 GMT -5
Lucy, It seem like we waited a long time for Kuem-shil to finally get a different story line, other then crying and sitting at the club watching Kyung-min playing the guitar. I was so happy when she was investigating her mothers death, and supporting her sick sister, that has been so sweet. We have waited so long for the show to do something more with her. I love the show, but it could pick up the pace. Kyung-min, needs a change in his story line also. I just thought these two characters should of had a stronger story line.
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Post by gpaul on May 23, 2006 20:40:16 GMT -5
Lucy, You said that very eloquently. I agree with you totally, this is a beautiful story, the writing is not weak, instead it is developing the characters in such a way that we do not know right away who is good and who is evil (except for the children). We also do not know at this point who will end up together at the end. Other dramas we know what will happen, we watch to see how it happens. In this drama we still do not know who killed Keunshil's mother. We make assumptions and then they seem to be wrong. Evil people are redeemed and seemingly good people do bad things.
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Post by Soju on May 23, 2006 21:54:39 GMT -5
gpaul I agree with you about the 'grayness' of good and evil. I find it adds a nice dose of realism.
When I saw that stuff about the assasination of President Park, I got out my Korean history book to check the chronology. This was followed in about six months by the Kwangju Uprising, as well as several other mass protests. I'm looking to see how the characters get caught up in all that.
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Post by mikey on May 24, 2006 0:02:25 GMT -5
I loved your analysis, Lucy. Though the storyline is sometimes subtle, I found it wonderfully thoughtful and complex.
I do have to say, however, that almost every episode of “Golden Apple” seemed to have a 5-10 minute span where nothing seems to happen. Perhaps this is getting edited out of the Chicago broadcast (I was fortunate enough to watch the unedited version on TAN) but it did cause the show to drag a bit for me at times.
Still, I watched the final episode last week, and I was extremely satisfied with the conclusion. Everything gets tied together beautifully, and “Golden Apple” will surely go down as one of my favorites of 2006. I just loved the music, too, and it’s too bad that the OST is already no longer available from YesAsia (I hope this is just temporary, but I now regret my procrastination in placing my order).
HOWEVER . . . After viewing the final episode on TAN, I was shocked to read the fan reviews over on the California board, where there was gross dissatisfaction with the conclusion! Fans complained that several of the major character’s situations were left unresolved. It turns out that the Los Angeles broadcast had a full 20 minutes of that final episode deleted!
That was a very busy final episode, and I can see how cutting almost anything from it would have left the viewer disappointed and confused. No wonder the California fans were unhappy.
I sure hope this doesn’t happen in Chicago. “Golden Apple” is too fine a drama to be ruined by careless editing.
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Post by Soju on May 24, 2006 18:31:07 GMT -5
I'm pretty sure we are seeing the whole episodes here. I have watched it along with the VOD's simultaneously, and every time, they were the same. I'm assuming that the VOD's were full-length.
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Post by teacher on May 24, 2006 22:19:09 GMT -5
How many episodes will there be?
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