Wednesday 12 June 2013

You’re the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 27-28 [Open Thread]

After a lot of long hard deliberation, I decided to drop recaps for You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin after all. I've explained the reasons in previous recaps so I won't belabor the point here; the short answer is that I've decided that this show isn't the best use of my recapping time.

On the other hand, I do still like it and find little gems sprinkled throughout the episodes—not nearly enough, but they're there. And I know you all probably would like to continue to have a place to talk about the show, even if we can't provide full detailed recaps, so I'm opening up Sunday nights to Soon-shin Open Threads.

If I've got the time I'll weigh in with some thoughts—I can't promise weecaps or anything formal, but we'll play this by ear. It'll give me a chance to experiment with format as well.

 

 
The gist:

The parentage issue is out in the open, with not only Soon-shin finding out the truth but also the press. Mi-ryung ignores everybody's entreaties, as is her wont, and leaks info to the media about Soon-shin's identity. Soon-shin is furious and repeatedly tells her off, but Mi-ryung has the most virulent case of selective hearing I've ever seen in a drama, and does everything her way. She does it all with this absurdly wide-eyed look of innocence, too, which is the most shameless thing, I swear. She decides she's going to take Soon-shin in and live with her and be the Best Mom Ever. I wonder if someone could tell her that she already earned the title Worst Mom Ever, so the most she could shoot for at this point is Mediocre At Best.

So now the press knows Soon-shin's identity, which adds to everyone's stress, except Mi-ryung's because she laps it up with a grin, incredibly pleased with herself. I actually feel sorry for Yeon-ah, who finds herself totally shunted off to the side in Mi-ryung's excitement to welcome her new toy daughter. But then I remember Yeon-ah was so smirky when Mi-ryung dumped Soon-shin the first time and figure she's getting her karmic bite in the ass.

The reporters hound the mother-daughter duo for an interview, which Soon-shin is roped into doing. She makes Mi-ryung promise she'll pull the interview from broadcast, but Mi-ryung tells them to go ahead and air it. When it does air, Soon-shin's family is blindsided and hurt.

 
Highlights:

Young-hoon takes a proactive step in showing romantic interest in Soon-shin, beating Jun-ho to the punch. I can't feel too bad for Jun-ho 'cause he's the one dragging his feet and tripping over his words. And sometimes tripping over his feet and dragging his words.

Young-hoon asks Soon-shin out on a date (using the word "date"), then asks her to call him oppa or Young-hoon-sshi (instead of Manager). He takes her to a musical featuring Jun-ho's talent, so Jun-ho is there and spends the whole show staring over at Soon-shin, upset because he tried to ask her to the show. But she ignored his call so he never got to ask.

Then he horns in on their coffee date afterward, literally squeezing past Young-hoon to claim his chair. Petty, petty. But I do like how he presses her to admit that she was envious of the actors onstage, and that she still wishes she could try acting. She denies it and Young-hoon tells him to lay off, telling her encouragingly that she ought to do what she wants. It's what makes Young-hoon so cuddly and sweet in the moment, but ultimately wrong for her—he's thinking of her temporary comfort and not her long-term regret. Jun-ho, on the other hand, is trying to get her to be honest with herself because that's the only way she'll be happy in the long run.

Bread Man is hilariously terrible at English, and yields to Bread Boy's suggestion to motivate himself with the threat of forehead flicks. Only Bread Boy takes WAY too much enjoyment in doling them out, and Bread Man gets pissy. Then he asks Hye-shin for some help, and beams when she agrees.

Sadly, those are about the only highlights I have for this week, and they're both in Episode 28 and occupy about five minutes in total. This good-to-tedious ratio is killin' me.

Oh, on the upside, at one point Mom does utter these words to Chicken Ajumma: "How can you say that? Are you even my friend?"

 
Lowlights:

SO MANY lowlights.

Grandma is sickeningly sweet to Soon-shin, and openly says it's because she's blood family now.

Yoo-shin is really hard to take, and advocates "giving Soon-shin back" to her birth mom. Also, she carries on like Dad's betrayal and Soon-shin's existence is an affront to HER. Why is this all about her? Ugh.

She's not terrible deep-down, and I do get why she's so angry. It's just, I shouldn't have to dig so deep for rationalizations and explanations as to why she's not a horrible person. I should maybe be able to see that from the way she lives her life. And yet here she is, screaming, "Send her away!" Poor Soon-shin, having chosen her adoptive family only to have them yelling at her to leave.

Yi-jung, bleh, starts wooing Chan-woo's mother in her hopes of eventually winning him over with her deluded persistence. Chicken Ajumma assumes this is Chan-woo's secret girlfriend and LOVES it. She tells Yoo-shin, who HATES it. Chan-woo asks her to take their relationship public with the parents so they can marry, and she yells at him and storms off angrily. Sigh.

Mi-ryung tries to buy off Mom, offering her a big envelope of money as "thanks" for raising her daughter.

Too much Chicken People and Mom and reporters and gossipy extras.

Too little Jun-ho.

Too little Young-hoon.

Too little cute.

RELATED POSTS

  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 25-26
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 23-24
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 21-22
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 19-20
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 17-18
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 15-16
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 14
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 13
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 12
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 11
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 10
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 9
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 8
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 7
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 6
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episode 5
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 3-4
  • You're the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 1-2
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Tags: featured, IU, Jo Jung-seok, Lee Mi-sook, Sohn Tae-young, Yoo Inna, You're the Best Lee Soon-shin


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