It's too early for me to be doing this but there's been a growing discourse on how Jihyeok is a red flag which had me scratching my head, also episodes 4-5 of Dynamite Kiss may be my favorite out of the five episodes so far (which doesn't say much lol but we live). The first three episodes were mostly Darim and her life where Jihyeok was more of a comic relief for me, but I feel epis 4 and 5 do a smart job of subtly showing why Jihyeok behaves the way he does and why he cannot let go of his feelings for Darim. The way he seemed terrified and kept asking his mom about her accident in epi 4, I'm assuming she may have tried to end it all more than once. He's seen his mom being miserable in a marriage where she gave her 100%, only to be disrespected and hurt over a man who didn't deserve her love and isn't the least bit repentant. So of course, the idea of romantic love never moved him growing up, because he saw what it did to his mom. Not to forget, he had to be the "guardian" to keep his mom safe, the 'unshakeable ground' beneath her feet, so he chose not to even open himself to the idea of it. But then one chance encounter and Go Darim brings his cold, dead, loveless heart back to life after so long, so much so that this man makes a WHOLE list of neighborhoods with 'grandpa trees' just to find her. Only to find out it was all an impossible dream because he is the 'other guy', the third person in her 'marriage'. His initial reaction aside which is normal for any rational person to experience, I feel his anger and frustration have a lot to do with realizing he was inadvertently an accomplice in cheating in a marriage, and more so a marriage with a kid who is close to his age when he first saw his mom cry. He may be cynical about love but you can tell he prioritizes the sanctity of marriage over all else, as we see in epi 5, where he's mad over the fact that Darim's 'husband' was MIA with all the loan-shark drama in her life, and specifically near the end with that hug (THAT WAS EVERYTHING btw).
He sees glimpses of his mom in Darim: her presence, her views, her ideas, her drive and passion for work (his mom was an exec director in charge of the park after all). It's why he is falling for her, it's also why he gets mad at her (and him), it's also why he keeps protecting her. He'd rather break his own heart than break Darim's marriage or let someone else break it by liking Darim's "husband". Do y'all realize how much of a strong moral code you have to have to be able to do this? Dying a thousand times, feeling like you are drowning and cannot breathe because the only sliver of light you saw has disappeared, and yet wanting that light to shine ever so brightly elsewhere because that's enough of a consolation for you?
We as audience see the suffering Darim has to go through and the choices she has to make. We can sympathize and get mad when Jihyeok makes things harder for her. But we have omniscience. He. Does. Not. It's even worse since despite learning about Darim's 'truth' he still can't seem to let go of these feelings (based on the trailer and how things are going), which, to him, makes him an even more terrible person.
but growing up in a dysfunctional family, he most likely never got to learn how to process feelings in a healthy way (e.g. being an excellent son to his mom to overcompensate for his trash dad) so he uses anger toward Darim as an outlet whenever his feelings get the best of him. Notice how, aside from the initial outbursts, many of these moments of anger actually stem from him trying hard not to feel anything for her anymore because he got vulnerable around her.
Her tent catches fire -> He freaks out thinking he lost her -> He sees her alive and relief floods him -> He gets mad because how the heck does he still care?
She almost drowns in the pool -> He loses his mind -> He saves her -> He gets mad because why does she need to risk her life over a report knowing she can't swim and WHY does he care enough to pull such petty stunts?
She gets kidnapped by the loan sharks -> He is literally risking his life on the road trying to get to her -> He saves her -> He gets mad at her because why he'd go to such lengths to save her, especially when it's her husband's job?
His emotional outbursts are so deeply tied to his family trauma, with an abomination of a dad and an at-risk mom, I don't find him a red or pink or magenta flag as such. Is what he is doing often petty and unreasonable? Yes. Is he behaving the way how SO MANY of us would behave if we were put in such a wretched situation? Yes. Is he still a man who does right by Darim? Yes.
Just because dramas off late have been riding the "green flag" tide does not mean people irl are actually like that. You cannot always be understanding or forgiving especially after someone (albeit inadvertently) puts you in a position you hate the most. I love both Darim and Jihyeok but I wouldn't assign any flags to either of them because they're both dealing with things the only way they know how to deal with.
I'm actually looking forward to seeing how he handles his emotions around Darim as we proceed with a buy-1-get-1 free full-fledged husband and son in the picture with a side of extra-marital affair, because a trainwreck is coming for sure, and I don't see any of them coming out of this unscathed.
turnnoffyourmind
stormborns
romaincrisis
tangentwithtanner
