Start-Up thought for the day:
Second-male lead syndrome hits especially hard with Ji-Pyeong because of the cinematography of the scenes featuring the love triangle, the majority are shot through his perspective.
- The string in Dal-Mi’s hair: the camera angles and focus suggest that the viewer was meant to want Ji-Pyeong to be the one to move it. The shots feel his hesitation and then heartbreak when Do-San reaches for her hair. We watch that moment over Ji-Pyeong’s shoulder.
- The conversation after the networking party: that whole scene features, a very comical, tiny Ji-Pyeong noticeably in the background. Many of the angles are from his point-of-view or have him somewhere in the frame. The viewer is meant to feel his exclusion and desperation to get Do-San out of there. The moment never really feels personal and private because Ji-Pyeong’s presence is almost always known by the camera.
- The DoDal hug when they’re accepted into Sandbox: until he leaves, that moment focuses mainly on Ji-Pyeong’s perspective and, once again, the viewer feels his wish for his and Do-San’s places to be swapped.
- The dinner at their house when Dal-Mi gives them different sizes of meat: the camera doesn’t pay special attention to Dal-Mi serving Do-San. It stays with Ji-Pyeong when he realizes what’s happened. The camera wants the viewer to feel the initial elation of Dal-Mi serving him first, then the instant hurt of finding out she gave Do-San a bigger piece. Honestly that whole sequence from the moment they reach the house through the entire night and morning, Do-San’s desperation to have time alone with Dal-Mi and her grandmother is played off in a comical and whiny way while Ji-Pyeong’s instance to stay, still also comical, is played off more understandably, like the viewer should agree that yes, he should stay. Neither is more deserving, but the viewer is meant to want both of them there. (Gah, while writing this, is so obvious that whoever you shipped by then was who’s side you’re on through these scenes. Oof what a mess. That’s not how that should be.)
- The aftermath of the fist-fight: the first person Dal-Mi runs into is Ji-Pyeong, so just on that and potentially the fact that makeup gave him more bruising, he is seen as the victim in Dal-Mi’s eyes and Do-San as the attacker when she later connects the dots that they fought each other. It’s the principle of little kids fighting and whoever makes it to the parents/authority first is seen as the defensive side. I’m not really sure the psychology behind that, I’ve just noticed that pattern.
I have more examples, but I don’t want to scare people away with a long text post. The big takeaway, which has been obvious since the first scene when he was the first character to be introduced, is that no one should be surprised that the viewers have put so much love and focus on JI-Pyeong because the direction did that first. Intentionally or not, that’s what happened. Sure, it was mostly for plot-twist purposes that Do-San’s story has taken more time to unravel, but the initial viewer sympathy, if you came into the show unbiased, was put on Ji-Pyeong and Dal-Mi and their connection. Initial reasoning for the letters aside, it was obvious he started to care about her. The grandmother didn’t dictate every letter, just the first.
TL:DR: Start-Up’s character dynamics have been unfairly balanced since the beginning and no matter who you root for, the ending isn’t likely to feel earned because of the mess they’ve made throughout the arc of the plot. The strong attraction by the viewers toward Ji-Pyeong can be traced back to who’s perspective starts a scene and his has been featured heavily.
I will make another post about this later cause I have more thoughts comparing this show to She Was Pretty and how to do mistaken identity and love triangles. Cause oof this show...this writing...the viewers shouldn’t be this split. Creators shouldn’t purposefully want to divide and anger their audiences. I’ve always been confused by that.
