@flashbulb-memory about your recent post because I had some THOTS alright.
What the show lacked in terms of plot coherence and characterization, they more than made up for it in the interpersonal relationships and conflicts between not just the main characters but also Gicheol and Junmo's relationships with the secondary characters.
I'm never a fan of love triangles, even less so when it's straight. But there was nothing love triangle-y or remotely heterosexual about the relationships between Gicheol-Junmo-Euijeong.
Gicheol was genuinely in love with both Euijeong and Junmo, that's as clear as day. Euijeong, especially after witnessing Junmo's descent into violence and Gicheol's desperate efforts to leave the underworld behind, had so many conflicted feelings. But some part of her was still in love with Gicheol, she'd kept that damn necklace for years after their parting. But her love for Junmo triumphed that, clouding her rational judgement and forcing her to act impulsively.
Junmo's thing for Gicheol alone could take up an entire post (or 45) of itself, but throughout the finale we get more than a glimpse into what he actually feels for Gicheol. And what he feels is some fucked up rendition of love. He wants to destroy him, he wants to save him. And in the end he does both, at the same time. We're told that Junmo became a monster for Euijeong, but by the end he protected Gicheol just as indiscriminately.
Haeryun is a special case because her relationships are not as intermingled as the main trio. But her dynamic with Junmo is fascinating to watch, it's a mirror to his relationship with Gicheol. She betrays her father for him after watching just how loyal he is to Gicheol. Something that she wants for herself. The matter mostly feels one-sided, but Junmo definitely grows fond of her by the end. He comes to care for her more than he thought he would (he even says that out loud) and I don't think of it in necessarily romantic terms.
When Haeryun says that utterly poignant line about "there's someone I want to protect...in my heart", she's just declaring the essence of the show, explicitly mirroring both Gicheol and Junmo. From her perspective, when Junmo said that, it was only about Gicheol and she says it with a sort of sadness in her voice because somewhere she knows that she can't replace Gicheol in Junmo's life. From her perspective, everything Junmo's done has been only for Gicheol. And everything he has or hasn't done with her has also probably been for him. She just cannot compete. That's why she asks Junmo for one last confession "you've been so kind to me. was any of it real?"
And god, Gicheol's relationships with his crew and Junmo's relationship with Do young are done fantastically too. Jung bae, Hee sung and Jong ryeol all tried their best to save Gicheol from himself (and from both Junmo and Euijeong). Jung bae's scene with Gicheol in his office actually broke me. Hee sung always put the boss and his work before his own damn family. Jong ryeol was actually Gicheol's guard dog, ready to execute any order given to him. And he stayed loyal to him until the very end. Good god they all loved Gicheol the most, they were his actual rocks–but he never even gave them a chance to prove it.
Junmo's brief cameo with his mother-in-law is so beautifully portrayed. It's a small scene but it culminates so poignantly at her funeral. You know exactly why Junmo breaks down the way he does and in that moment, your heart weeps for him. It's that powerful.
All the relationships in the show portray a different kind of a tragedy, because none of them were meant to last. And it's terribly enchanting to watch it all fall apart.
romaincrisis
vaporwave
areudirty
titsay
origamiaround
kianamaiart
