“Kapag mahal ka, babalikan ka” goes down the drain
I know this is kinda a bit late since there is already a new episode, but hey, don’t judge me. I rewatched October 6′s episode (despite having an exam later) because it was really a spectacular one for me.
The “Kapag mahal ka, babalikan ka” mantra goes down the drain as Leah realizes that what she believed in for so long was nothing but a lie. Yes it’s stupid that she did not even let her mother explain but can you blame the girl? When what you believed in and held on for so long suddenly shatters right in front of your face, logic does not come readily to you. We’ve seen how much she loves her mother to the point that only her mother has a picture on-display in their apartment in America. And when she was struggling with the choice of love and a family, despite crying to her sister (who can respond), she writes to her mother (who in her knowledge was dead already). And then wow. Nadine Lustre’s performance on that was pretty solid. I mean, we all know that Nanang was alive (and even before she was shown to be, I already guessed that), so I was already expecting Leah to be very hurt, but she caught me off guard with that breaking down scene of hers. When she dropped on the floor, cried her guts out, kicked and hit a little like a child on tantrum, I felt so sorry for her. I guess we’ve all experienced that, when we are so in despair and you just want to cry it all out but the tears are not enough so you wail and kick and hit. It was so convincing I wanted to break the moment and clap right there.
And then she ups and leaves and breaks another promise (to Clark that she would be there when he gets home). But again, can you blame the girl? All that shattered belief and just being fed up with everything that’s happening in your life? I wanted to scream “Stay!” because being with the one you love could really help ease the pain, but I realized it’s gonna be hard for her to be happy under the scrutiny of Tita Jack and Jiggs, Tita Jack’s emotional blackmail, and Jiggs’ selfish immaturity. So yes, I forgave her for going back to the Philippines where everything is real and familiar, with her loving family and neighbors around. (But Clark begging her to stay really really broke my heart.)
That airport scene was also very good. I love airport scenes in Korean dramas but local ones do not give me that authenticity (maybe because I’m familiar with it) but OTWOL’s airport scene wowed me. It was not that grand with shouting or guards holding you back or whatever. It was a conversation between two people in love, so genuine and so heartbreaking. And that kiss? Man, I felt the desperation on that. (Actually I agree with Leah that maybe it’s not the right time for them yet. Maybe they just need to let Tita Jack see that they are sacrificing their love for the family but it really breaks them and makes them unhappy, wait for Jiggs to move on or find another girl or mature…..but yes, waiting for love hurts pretty damn much.)
HANDS DOWN with this episode. I commend Nadine and James for such solid acting (I was really waiting for a great project for them to show their potential and hooray finally – disclaimer: I’m not bashing DnP, TBAYD and PSHR because I watched them all). Also, Jadaone for directing these two and the writers. I did not cry on this episode so me praising it is not because of an emotional thing. This is an objective view from someone who loves to watch romance and criticizes bad acting, bad story, bad writing. But this definitely exceeded my expectations (especially because I thought the only thing I will feel is heartbreak on this week’s episodes). Wow. Just wow. After watching it the first time, I wanted to give it a standing ovation. After watching it the second time, I still felt the need to clap and congratulate the show, hence, this blog.
