Reply 1988 / 응답하라 1988

How does it feel to travel back in time?

(Yes, this is going to be an english post. Pure fangirling)

Now I know how it feels, only with different background. A country which I want to live in my 20s. South Korea. Thanks to a certain k-drama called Reply 1988/Answer Me 1988.

I don't really watch k-dramas, honestly. It's either because I can already see how the ending is going to be, or it is really cheesy that I couldn't help but cringe in disgust. But when I do watch a drama, a good one hell of drama, I wouldn't stop thinking of it. The messages that the drama carries often influence my thinking. Therefore, for the next couple of months or probably year, I would sometimes behave or think like those character in the drama. Wow... as I am writing this, I started to think that I am sort of dumb.....What I am saying is, when I love a drama, that drama must be hella good.

I started to watch this drama because I watched the music video for Oh Hyuk's ost for Reply 1988. Oh.. that god damn beautiful voice owned by Oh Hyuk. Thanks bruh, you just dragged me to watch one of the best kdrama of all times. As I watched the music video, I got excited because Hyeri is the main character this time. I decided to watch it, although it was D-3 final exam week. Well.. I got nothing to lose.

First episode and I was like... grinning-lol-lmao-rofl-and....bawling-back to laughing. That sentence basically describes the whole drama, seriously. What I love about this drama is that there is no antagonist. I hate it when I had to hate a person because she/he was being another person. Oh, I forgot to tell you that Reply series (before 1988, there is Reply 1997 and 1994) basic story line is that there's a woman in the present time and we (the viewers) will travel back in time to know the stories of how she met her husband. It is like a Korean How I Met Your Mother, exclude the dirty jokes. That is what makes it interesting though. Each Reply series has a different feel (of course Han, it has different time set), and it keeps you wonder who's the husband until the very last episode.

This 1988 series though, I think it is the best of those three. It has so many good life values, and it is more concentrated on the family relationship rather than whom the main character is going to end up with. It is so good that I thought I would never be able to watch any drama anymore.. T_T

So today, I just watched the 17&18 episode. AND OH MY GOD??????????????????!

Excuse me while I curse my heart out.

I'm going to curse in order.

Episode 17

I LIKE THIS EPISODE THE BEST OH MY GODDDDDDD. I love how the writer decided to include this topic about 'Irony'. About what you used to dream of and what you really become now. It was really touching how the mothers and fathers used to have unexpected dreams, but gave up they dream to actually make a living, and now their dream was all about their children being healthy and doing well in life. It is so touching <3>

Episode 18

WHAT AN EPISODE. 

I'M REALLY CONFUSED AS TO WHOM DOKSUN WILL END UP WITH. I am all for #TeamTaek but something is fishy about this episode. I think Doksun had already fallen for him by the way she always looked at the door to see if it's Taek or not but BUT BUT then again THE HEARTFELT CONFESSION BY JUNGHWAN... Don't get me wrong, but I TOTALLY LOVE JUNGHWAN. My heart ached when I saw him broke down like that. I think this episode might be the end for Junghwan and Doksun? Since the title was Goodbye, First Love. But then.. it ain't over when it isn't over. Maybe it is the end for his first love, but it is a start for another one (by this I mean with future Doksun)? I don't know oh my god

This is the fun of watching reply series, I know, but it is also very frustrating!!

This week, two final episodes are going to be aired. I want this drama to end, because I am curious to death who the hell is going to be Doksun's future husband. At the same time, I don't want this drama to end. I want it to go back to 1988 and make more episodes about family, because I feel like the next two episode will focus more on the husband hunt thing and I will definitely miss the casual ahjumma and ahjussi screen time. :(

By the way, I will write down my take on the husband hunt thing. As for now, I am 65% convinced that the future husband of Doksun is Taek. Why?

1. Taek is left handed. So is the husband. You can see that future husband of Doksun is drinking with his left hand.

2. Episode 2, future husband of Doksun SMOKES! That's the big hint. In this episode we can see that Jongpal thinks that people who smoke are bad. On top of that, he also has a weak immune system. It is very unlikely for him to smoke in this case. I don't think he want to sacrifice his health and his future career of being a pilot (in my country, air force pilot is not allowed to smoke)

2. On the sixth episode, where future Doksun and his husband were arguing, she said, "Want to talk about all the people you dated before we got married?" and on the 17 episode we know that Taek had dated a couple of girls (since he had many fans) simply because he couldn't say no. But I don't think Junghwan had dated in his teenage years, and also according to Dongryong in episode 18, Junghwan had never confessed to anyone. Also, there was a scene where Dongryong pushed Junghwan to date girls.

3. Still on ep 6, where future Doksun was arguing with his husband, we can see that the future husband forgot about who's the winner of some kind of award and got mixed up with the next year's winner. I know that everyone is allowed to forget sometimes, but this behavior is certainly Taek's! We all know that he doesn't fancy music that much.

3. When old No Eul was visiting his noona, in episode 8. There, the future husband said this, "It took me 10 years to talk informally to him!" Well.. poor social skills, I think I know whose personality it is.

4. On the 9th episode, future Doksun told his husband to dress more warmly. I think I know the person who doesn't wear a jacket in a cold winter night. Even Doksun is seen wearing a scarf! It must be really cold but apparently it is not for Choi Taek.

5. Here comes the interesting part. When Future Doksun and his husband were looking at a picture that captured only both of them. I think they were looking at a picture taken when Doksun and Taek went to Beijing. Why? Simply because the future husband pointed at the right bottom corner of the picture. In Junghwan's case, the date is written on the bottom left. Also, the printed size of  Junghwan and Dokson'a photo after the concert is too small for the huge frame. It fit in Junghwan's pocket so it's really small. Though I am not really sure about what kind of result that is produced by professional film camera which being used by the reporter who took Doksun and Taek's picture, I think it would include a date in the right bottom corner, also the printed size would be probably bigger.

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The above part, it is written on Tuesday, and now it is Sunday and I HAVE WATHED THE TWO FINAL EPISODES. OMG.

AND

.

.

.

(drum roll) CHOI TAEK IS THE HUSBAND! CHOI TAEK FTW!!!!! Omg I am so happy I could die. Seriously though. All that guessing game is not for nothing! Can't you just see how happy and cute Doksun and Taek toghether are<3 br="">

Now, there's a lot of hate going towards Taek. Mainly because many people think that Junghwan would be the end game. They're saying that the plot changed suddenly, etc. Well.. for me, the reason why I think Taek is the end game has came up since episode two. TWO people. And it is a strong one, the future husband of Doksun smokes. I know that most people are rooting for Junghwan because he's 'the cool guy', while Taek is 'the baby' but.. seriously???? He had been a pro baduk player since he was in elementary school. I think he knows the world better than his friends. My heart also hurts seeing Junghwan, but if I were Doksun, I probably chose Taek over Junghwan too because TAEK EFFIN EXPRESSED HIS FEELINGS. Yes, I love Junghwan but it's his fault that Doksun never gets the signal that he had feelings for her. Why? Because he kept on changing attitude towards her which only made her confused!

 

While some people judge this drama as bad because of the ending, I still think that this is THE BEST DRAMA. I just don't get it. Just because the couple they're rooting for didn't end up together so it's a bad drama? Reply 1988 is more than just the husband hunt game. It's about family. It is about friendship. It's about life. It gave us so many beautiful scenes, tear-jerking scenes, and life lessons. I just want to thank the crew and writer for wrapping up this drama beautifully. I just wish there would be more screen time for Junghwan though. They should've shown Junghwan's love life at least, he deserves that much. All in all, I think this drama has taken over my heart. I don't think I can watch any Kdrama anytime soon, because all I think of is Taek.. Doksun.. Ssamundong cuties.. Ahjussi and Ahjummas.. Jinjoo. /cries heavily/

When I went back in search of our neighborhood street, the street had aged so much. You could feel that the time had passed. i can’t go back to my youth, or to this street. They are both the same. Time will always flow. Everything will pass by. That might be why youth is beautiful. It shines, blindingly bright, for just an instant. But you can never go back to it. 1988. This is the end of our Ssangmundong story. Longing for that time and longing for that street isn’t because I miss the younger version of myself. In that place, where we won’t be able to gather like that again, I regret being unable to say my final farewell. To the things that are already gone, to a time that has already passed, I want to say a belated farewell.                                    Goodbye, my youth. Goodbye, Ssangmundong.