Mr. Sunshine Ending
The ending of Mr. Sunshine left me in tears, read crying the entire time, but it was probably the best possible ending this drama could have. Right from the beginning we all knew there wouldn’t be any rainbows and happily ever afters. But seeing every character’s development and seeing them fall so honorably was all I could ask for.
Dong Mae counting down his last 10 days and taking down as many of the Musin Society members as he could, while avenging Yuzo was the best possible way he could’ve gone down. Him imagining his moments with Ae Shin as he takes his last breaths broke my heart, because he really is the most loyal human being on this planet. Dong Mae saying that him making at least one mark in her life is enough for him made me realize that he probably made one of the biggest differences in Ae Shin’s life. He put the words noble fool in her head, and it’s made her re-evaluate her whole existence and how she goes about living. So he doesn’t even realize how big of an impact he’s had on her.
Kim Hee Sung, aka my baby, also went down fighting, but his version of fighting. His fight was never with a gun or a sword, but with his words and photographs. And it’s because of him that Korea was able to collect and control their own line of history. He says he loves useless things but he’s never ever been useless in this fight for independence. To think his love for Ae Shin caused him to find this amazing passion to fight and be part of the revolution, he really has grown to be such a honorable man.
Lee Yang Hwa (bc in this house we accept the woman she always wanted to be) is so iconic. Everyone thought she would sit pretty in her gowns and big hotel, but she was the baddest of them all. The woman literally blew up her life’s saving and hard work for the better of the country, a country she never really knew. The world was so cruel to her but she never took a step back and gave up, instead she armed herself with her gun, fencing stick, and literal bombs. When she confessed to Gu Dong Mae at the last moment I just wanted to grab KES by the collar and scream WHY!!!! But I’m happy Yanghwa had Dong Mae, and I’m glad Dong Mae had Yanghwa. The love these two have for each other really is the strongest kind of love out there.
Eugene Choi was someone I got bored of throughout the drama, oops, but in this last episode he really came through. He realized the importance of Ae Shin fighting to save her country, when before he wanted to be selfish and keep her for himself. He went out of his way to save the Righteous Army multiple times. He genuinely likes Gu Dong Mae even though he knows Dong Mae is in love with Ae Shin. He adores Hee Sung. He appreciates Lee Yang Hwa. The scene on the train when he was dying and MeloMance’s OST was in the background, gave me goosebumps. He had such a big impact on so many of the supporting characters, his death really was hard hitting.
I was surprised, but also not surprised, that Go Ae Shin survived from everyone else. Statistically, she had the biggest probability of death because she was always in harm’s way, but she has way too much skill and way too many people backing her up for her to die. These last two episodes really made me appreciate Kim Tae Ri as an actor, when she sobbed I sobbed. When she smiled, I smiled. It also made me realize how strong Go Ae Shin is. She sees her comrades and family dying left and right. Her teacher, her guardians that she saw as parent figures, her husband. And yet, at the end she’s standing and making sure Korea has a strong future ahead. She’s optimistic, even though she’s given every reason not to be. She’s probably one of the strongest female characters I’ve ever seen.
I think this drama will stay with me for a really long time. I’m not even Korean and I was in tears because of the patriotic feelings in me, I can’t even imagine how native Koreans feel. I think this drama had the best actors, they literally became their characters. There was never a moment where I didn’t buy their acting. If I ever paused it was in awe of the accuracy of their portrayals. I give this drama a 10/10, and this is from a Gu Dong Mae fan who wanted him to get the girl. Everyone, go do yourselves a favor and watch Mr. Sunshine.
