Bestfriend knows it all.

Thanks to @ourpsychicfg for the idea and the screenshots too 💕

In every drama, we often see someone as the main lead's bestfriend, which is an important character to grow up the storyline. They may seem lack of something, but when they give advices, that is no joke. Because they don't just giving it as they want to, but it is surely considered by everything they know, about their bestfriend and other circumstances around.

In previous Reply series and Prison Playbook, there are these people that know it all. Even before their dear bestfriend realise it, they know it.

Reply 1997

Jun Hee happens to be the one who likes Yoon Jae. He shared it all with Si Won, with knowing that Si Won and Yoon Jae are as close as twins.

But for all that time he spend with them, he even know better that two of them are meant to be.

Those scenes are when Si Won started to ask herself whether he really fall for Yoon Jae. And these are when they talked about Hak Chan and Yoo Jung who passed through the ups and downs but can be back together.

Reply 1994

Haitai was the one who is busy finding the one. But from all of his experiences, he could say it all loud. To Trash:

And to Najung:

Though he said "If it were me, I would dated her right away." But he just can't, because he confidently said "She's a friend."

He's been the bridge of them. He knew that one day they do something, they can end that pathetic one-sided love.

Reply 1988

We know Dong Ryong was the one who are less than anyone in the gang. Growing up alone when his parents busy working, he learnt about life by himself. He seems reckless, but why could Deok Sun comfortably talk about feeling with him? Because she looked at him as a bestfriend. She has been through wrong falling to the other two guys, but she wasn't see them as a man.

DR: Girls fool around and do the crab-leg dance at home. But they're on their best behavior in front of the guys they like. If, I mean if, someone does the crab-leg dance in front of you, she doesn't see you as a man. (Then Deok Sun's dancing scene with no shame in front of the boys, no Taek there. Taek came late but just laugh at it.)

So it left us with the only option, Taek.

They 'cursed' them, just before Taek confessed.

Then Dong Ryong threw a parable question just to make sure about her feeling and dragging her to the right way.

"Then, do you like Jung Hwan or Sun Woo?"

"Don't ask a question like that."

She was so sure about Taek or Dong Ryong, but couldn't choose between Jung Hwan and Sun Woo, because she saw as they are, just the same. She liked her guys, but a bit more about Taek.

He made her understand her feeling, wisely.

Oh and this scene made me sure that the decision is in the female lead's hand.

Prison Playbook

Ji Ho's friends sucessfully trapped them.

Je Hyeok's sister and Ji Ho's friend too, convincing doubtful Ji Ho. She felt one-sided because sometimes Je Hyeok just want to keep the sadness himself. Je Hyeok's sister knew that such a thing is easy for them to passed.

Hospital Playlist

Because we were just served 12 episodes out of 3 seasons, so it may be just a few scenes showed the bestfriend's meaningful gaze.

The suspicious one, and the warm one.

Found this too in the other episode. He was talking about his patient, but the lines... Does it mean he know it? 🤭

Then the camera moved to Seok Hyeong that looking at his friends at the backseat from the mirror, and it was blurry Andrea smiling right there 🙂

Besides Seok Hyeong, Jun Wan is always there, maybe he knew something too 😏

I'll be patiently waiting for another bestfriend's point of view, so we may get something leading us to the light way 💙

Hospital Playlist - Reply Series & Prison Playbook Parallelism #5 - Fate & Timing

Featuring @thisiskitsune​

N.B.:  Shin PD - “I wanted to be able to show the strength that [the viewers can get] through the small and precious stories from the hospital.  The setting and background is the only thing different about this drama compared to that of the ‘Reply’ series or ‘Prison Playbook.’ Similar to those dramas, Hospital Playlist follows the everyday lives of ordinary people, telling those small but previous and warm stories. The funny moments, the interesting moments, and the sad moments of life are all part of that story that I wanted to show when making this drama.” (Cr. Soompi)

Dear readers,

Fate and timing. These are the subjects that we will share with you today. It seems that fate and timing have been a recurring theme for writer Lee Woo Jung whenever she writes about the love story in all of her Reply series. 

In the Reply series, fate and timing were narrated by the main characters, be it the main couple or the guy having the unrequited love. There were also instances where those were given in a random scene. Let us first take a look at the narrations and a relevant random scene from the Reply series.

Reply 1997

“They say that people are born with a red string that they can’t see, tied to their pinky fingers, and the end is tied to the one you’re fated to be with. But the thread is twisted this way and that, making it hard to find the other end. People’s countless threads, all tangled together. But when I start to unravel it, I end up face to face with my fate, without even knowing it. If the red thread of fate really exists, then who is the one tied to my red thread?” – Yoon Jae, Reply 1997

“Each expecting different things, each looking at different places, each dreaming different dreams… everything that happens between one man and one woman, is just continuous love and war. You sulk, you pacify, you fight, you make up, you hurt, you embrace. A relationship like a manic-depressive patient who can’t make up his mind. But the hardest thing about the relationship between a man and a woman is the timing—if the love doesn’t begin at the same time, it’s unlikely to ever begin at all.” – Yoon Jae, Reply 1997

Reply 1994

“Sometimes there are moments when I really feel like there is a God. Even if there isn’t, there are times I feel like there has to at least be a something like Fate to explain certain situations. This exquisite coincidence, this unbelievable timing, this ingenious reversal—it’s possible that my fate is playing a game with me. Fate pushes me to the edge of a cliff, makes it so that I can’t budge, and in the end passes me the ball. In the end Fate is choosing. Now I just have to make a choice.” – Na Jeong, Reply 1994

“Fate is damned. Fate is cruel. And Fate… is strong. Fate throws us into dilemmas, traps us in corners where we can’t do a thing, and in the bitter end, even ignores our sincere prayers. That’s how Fate is damned. That’s how Fate is cruel and strong.” – Trash, Reply 1994

“Another reason why Fate is cruel and strong: timing you can’t predict. This is how Fate is cruel.” – Chilbong, Reply 1994

Reply 1988

“Fate doesn’t come around at any time. To use the word fate, it has to be a dramatic moment brought by coincidence—that makes it fate. That’s why another word for fate is timing. If I hadn’t gotten caught at just one of those lights, if those damned red lights had helped me out just once… I might be standing in front of her right now, like fate. My first love was always held back by damned timing. That damned timing. But fate and timing aren’t just coincidences that find you. They’re moments like miracles that arise out of choices made because of ardent desire. Surrender and decision, without hesitation—that is what makes timing. He was more ardent, and I should’ve had more courage. It wasn’t the red lights nor the timing that was bad… but the countless times I hesitated.” – Kim Jung-Hwan, Reply 1988

In Ep. 11, when the mothers went to see a fortune teller, she told them that Jun Hwan will do fine on his own. And in the finale of Reply 1988, we saw how Jun Hwan became a successful fighter pilot without Deok Sun as his partner. 

This, dear readers, is how Writer Lee created fate in her Reply universe (Cr. BoD). The theme will be narrated and the hints will also be there, in random scenes where nothing seems of much importance.

Hospital Playlist 

What about the variation in Hospital Playlist? Thus far, instead of individually narrated, these subjects were shown through the flow of the story, where it is relevant. The variation in Hospital Playlist uses random scenes and matching (mismatch) parallel scenes to depict the working of fate and timing (or mistiming). What is obviously missing is the individual narration by the lead actors/ actress. Using the narrations from previous reply series, the themes of fate and timing are reapplied for the main love story in Hospital Playlist.

Episode 4 on Fate and Timing 

A random scene whereby Song Hwa tells Ik Jun she wants to be a chauffeur if she quit being a doctor. Suddenly, Jeong Won appears out of nowhere seeking help to park his car before he rushes to ER.

Episode 6 on Timing:

A mismatch random scene whereby few months later, Song Hwa is walking to the car park’s lift when Ik Jun arrives and asks Song Hwa to park his bicycle because he needs to go to the toilet.

Episode 9 on Fate: 

A matching random scene whereby Song Hwa left IJ’s car unattended (car door’s open) and rushes to ER, resembling Jeong Won in Ep. 4.

Episode 5 on Fate and Timing:

A random scene whereby Jang is running after, and trying very hard to get the abuser father who is running away from her and Song Hwa easily catches him. A hint of a future event that despite Jang is running around to pursue Jeong Won it is Song Hwa who will be the one to effortlessly get him (Cr. BoD).

Episode 10 on Fate and Timing:

On 16th Oct. 2019, Ik Jun witnesses Jeong Won unswerving support to Song Hwa’s personal hobby of purchasing her wood stove and how she easily allows Jeong Won into her personal space. Jeong Won confesses about DLL, and gives her the management rights to his project and inheritance (i.e. the VIP room’s revenue). She accepts his confession with a sombre expression knowing he is leaving and agrees to wait for his explanation.

A few days later Ik Jun tries to train Song Hwa instead of accepting her eating habit and indirectly invades her personal space. She pushes his feet away. Subsequently, he indirectly confesses to her and she gives him an indirect answer by looking away and changing the topic.

A random scene whereby Jeong Won informs Jun Wan that he sells his car because he no longer needs it given that he has decided to leave. Unbeknownst to Jeong Won at that moment that in the end he will be making a decision to stay but without a car. Perhaps it’s a future hint of a newly employed chauffeur or a new camper van?

Episode 12 on Timing:

On 3rd Dec. 2019, Song Hwa is happily expecting Jeong Won’s confession. She readily supports his decision to stay and continue to treat his patients without him having to say it out loud. This time she is very pleased with his confession.

On 5th Dec. 2019, Ik Jun comes to Sokcho for the third indirect confession to Song Hwa. Song Hwa’s reaction to Ik Jun’s confession is in contrast to her reaction to Jeong Won’s confession, yet again. 

In the end fate is choosing: By end of S1, Song Hwa is left having to make a choice between the confession by Ik Jun and the person who is currently residing in her heart. Who will Song Hwa choose?

The Red String of Fate

A fellow FGr has given a thought about the red string between Song Hwa and Jeong Won. @thisiskitsune​ has observed that despite Jeong Won and Song Hwa lack one-to-one interactions from Ep. 1 to Ep. 9, yet it is very clear that Jeong Won has always been there quietly and willingly catering to her needs and comforts. Like his position as the drummer, he is always in the background looking out for her. Their silent understanding towards one another is like an invisible red string between them. 

This writer agrees. Song Hwa and Jeong Won may seem apart from each other yet they are very much aligned in their beliefs, principles, values and interests. So much so that they can read each other’s mind. It’s like their red string is there, invisible yet strongly connected. End of S1 may have presented them with a cruel fate. How will they work it out? Will their red string be broken by the dilemma they are facing? 

Perhaps S2 will enlighten us and we shall wait, patiently for that day to come.

Cr. BoD

.... said female lead to the..... second lead! #upss #sorry #justmy2cents #reply1994 #reply1988 #prisonplaybook #hospitalplaylist #ahnjeungwon #chaesonghwa #flowergarden 🌸🌿

Random Post #4: Rose Garden - An Inspiration from Prison Playbook

N.B.: Shin PD:  “I wanted to be able to show the strength that [the viewers can get] through the small and precious stories from the hospital.  The setting and background is the only thing different about this drama compared to that of the ‘Reply’ series or ‘Prison Playbook.’ Similar to those dramas, Hospital Playlist follows the everyday lives of ordinary people, telling those small but previous and warm stories. The funny moments, the interesting moments, and the sad moments of life are all part of that story that I wanted to show when making this drama.” (Cr. Soompi)

Housekeeping: I have a reason to include the N.B. in every post that pays homage to the Reply series and Prison Playbook. This is FGrs’ guiding principle in our analysis of Shin-Lee’s works on Hospital Playlist. In fact, FGrs will always follow the directions hinted by Shin PD in his interviews. Shin PD and Writer Lee are the creators. Their words are the sole key to understanding the direction of their story and how it will unfold. The N.B. is added for the benefit of our readers. It is good to remember that Shin-Lee have been dubbed as a genius PD-Writer duo in Korea. They do a thorough research in their works. Recently, Shin admitted to having a database of actors’ and actresses’ works from which they will have their pick. This could only mean they have their eyes on what is happening in the industry and they are very clear on what they want in their work. With this in mind, happy reading!

The Formulas

From watching the Reply series and Prison Playbook, we are made to understand that Shin-Lee have created a set of formula that they keep recycling into their next project. Therefore, as per the N.B., it is safe to say that Shin-Lee will continue to reuse these formulas in their latest creation i.e. Hospital Playlist. Prison Playbook’s setting and the stories of its inmates are used as a template for Hospital Playlist’s setting (Yulje Medical Hospital) and the stories of its medical staff and patients. On the contrary, the mechanics of the Reply series are used as the template for the stories of the lacking five. However, another theory has come to mind following recent findings on Prison Playbook. This will be the possible variation.

The followings could possibly be Shin-Lee’s reasons for referencing their previous projects:

For love in 40s, Shin has recently stated that “At their age they don’t live with passion and desperation for those days that have past and won’t fall passionately in love at first sight and get hurt by it”. Indeed for these 40 years old friends, love will be one that has grown over time (Packmule3@BoD). 

This post will review a specific inspiration / formula that have been taken from Prison Playbook to create the foundation for the main setting and a certain driving characters in Hospital Playlist.

The possible variation: The background of Hospital Playlist’s main driving force (i.e. co-owners) as well as the future co-owner (i.e. Song Hwa **) have been referred from Prison Playbook.

**  Daddy’s Long Leg Program is the first indication that Jeong Won trusted Song Hwa enough to hand over the management of his inheritance.

The Rose Garden & Wild Rose

I shall begin by looking at the special edition soundtrack of Prison Playbook. Among many OSTs for Prison Playbook, there is an instrumental song titled ‘Rose Garden’ by To Da Soo (Cr. To Da Soo - Topic).

https://youtu.be/Ys4UdkvKptI

Our fellow FGrs, @thisiskitsune has kindly re-watched and analysed Prison Playbook for us. Subsequently, she shared her findings on Rose Garden being the OST and the relevant scenes in Episode 11 where wild roses were first described by the prisoners, Kim Je Hyuk (Male Lead) and Ki Soo, during their conversation at the greenhouse.

Flashback:

In this scene, the context of the wild rose referred to by Je Hyuk to Lifer is solitude and longing for family. This is because Lifer lost both his wife and daughter, he was spending a life sentence and he has given up on living.

Musk Rose (Rosa Moschata), one of the Shakespeare Roses 

The possible variation: Another type of wild rose is used i.e. pink/ fuchsia moss rose. Solitude and/or cautious love will be the main theme for our wild rose i.e. moss rose.

How does this ‘Rose Garden’ relate to Hospital Playlist? The answer lies within the names i.e. Rosa,  Ahn Jeong Won and Chae Song Hwa. Rosa means Rose in Latin, Jeong Won means Garden in Korean while Chae Song Hwa (채송화) means Moss Rose (Portulaca). Rosa and Jeong Won are the two main people behind the setting that is Yulje i.e. the co-owners aka the driving force of the main setting/ background. Hence, the reference of Rose Garden. As stated above, Song Hwa is the possible future co-owners. 

It is interesting to note that only these two main roles (Song Hwa and Jeong Won) have separate meanings to their names aside from having other nicknames given to them which are also relevant when paired i.e. Mother Theresa and Buddha (their kindness and good deeds) as well as Psychic and Ghost (how well they read people).

Firstly, let’s talk about our first rose, Rosa. She is a strong woman of will. She loves all of her children but Jeong Won is the apple of her eyes. She married her husband, a renowned philanthropist. She has sustained through a marriage not based on love (initially) but I do believe that love comes later in different form and for them their marriage was built based on companionship, understanding, shared values and interests, trust, and relying on each other. Why I said shared values? Despite having all the money, she and her late husband lived humbly. She supported all her husband charity causes. Never once did we hear she complained about money and/or her husband’s assets, as well as his decision to donate them for charity causes.

My take:

The possible variation: When will love come knocking at the door for Song Hwa and Jeong Won and/or theirs will be a love marriage. 

Let’s make a quick revisit to Rosa-Jeong Won’s conversation in Episode 8:

Rosa shall be the pillar and bridge for Song Hwa and Jeong Won i.e. Song Hwa is Rosa’s first choice for Jeong Won, when she was not troubled by desperation (e.g. Rosa directly contacted Song Hwa to arrange for Jong Soo to attend the band’s practice instead of asking her own son). She also knows Song Hwa is a very reliable person and that is the most important criteria for her son’s life partner because simply, Rosa has been there, done that. She knows firsthand what is important in a marriage that last for a long time. 

Next is our wild Moss Rose, Song Hwa. I personally feel that Writer Lee has done a very detailed research on Moss Rose whereby even the setting of Song Hwa’s kakao talk profile picture resembles an image of that flower. It was given focus twice in Episode 2 (Seok Min texting Song Hwa) and Episode 3 (Ik Jun replying Song Hwa’s text on lunch). This is her profile picture:

I am just making a ‘wild’ guess here though I do believe it is a moss rose. This is what I found:

Sundial Fuchsia Moss Rose (Portulaca). (Photo Cr. to Peter Krumhardt)  

Portulaca ‘Sundial Fuchsia’ offers bold magenta-pink on compact, heat-resistant plants.

Pink Moss Rose Plant. (Photo Cr. to flowerphoto.org)

This is another variation of the pink moss rose. (Photo Cr. to  Wilawan Suntrakorn)

I am happy to be proven wrong but for now, I will take Song Hwa’s profile picture as a moss rose. 

Let’s now revisited the scene in Episode 4 to provide insight and proof on our wild rose Chae Song Hwa.

In relation to this remark and theory of our Moss Rose, I have come across an interesting and relevant flower story that includes a story of the Moss Rose. The book was written by Lenore E. Mulets and published in November 1903.

The Wild Rose: Moss Rose

“Once a little pink wild rose bloomed by the wayside. To all who passed her way she threw out a delicate perfume and nodded in kindly welcome. The larks and the humming-birds all loved the pink wild rose. The baby grasses and the violets snuggled up at her feet in safety. To all she was kind and sweet and helpful. One day Mother Nature passed that way. She saw the gentle wild rose sending out her helpful cheer to all. Mother Nature was pleased. She stopped a moment on her way to speak to the simple flower. She praised the wild rose for her sweetness and her beauty and her kindness. At last she promised her, her choice of all the beautiful things that were in the store of Nature. The pink wild rose blushed quite scarlet at the praise. For a moment she stopped to think. “I should like,” said the wild rose, blushing more and more, “I should like to have a cloak from the most beautiful thing you can think of.” Mother Nature looked down at her feet. She stooped. She arose and threw about the blushing pink rose a mantle of the softest, greenest, most beautiful moss. Mother Nature passed on her way. The sweet rose by the roadside drew her mantle of moss closely about her and allowed it to trail down the stem. She was very happy. She was never again to be called the simple wild rose, but in her heart she knew that her beautiful mossy mantle would only help her in spreading sweetness and kindness and beauty and the perfume of happiness through Mother Nature’s world.”

I fall in love with this heart-warming story. It really suits our moss rose character, Song Hwa. Furthermore, I am of the view that the green mantle moss represents our Garden, Jeong Won. From episode 1 till the end, he has been, time and time again, shown to care for her, supported her every decisions, understood her concerns, sensitive to her needs and to whom she relied on for advice and support. In fact, throughout Season 1, the only person she ever relied on for advice is Jeong Won. He was the only one who treated her as a girl. Throughout the earlier episodes, their shared values and similar interests have been told using the parallelism techniques. Yes, he grumbled to her during the Kalguksu scene but it was not similar to Jwan’s case. With Song Hwa it was more on her not considering that he hasn’t eaten yet, it’s personal. A key question that will decide the ending for Song Hwa’s love story will be who does Song Hwa like/ love? This is yet another reused formula in the Reply series.

Coming back to Rosa’s script, the following points are very relevant to the highlighted notes on the mossy mantle in the Moss Rose story:

Jeong Won:

 The Mossy Mantle:

Final Note: Is Mother Nature being represented by Rosa? We knew she took care of her little flower garden at home. We also knew the Flower Garden OST from Reply 1988 has been rearranged and played as the closing background music in every episode of Hospital Playlist. The rearranged music is titled Beyond the Rainbow Forest and included as another OST for Hospital Playlist. Could all of these Flower Garden, Rose Garden and Moss Rose theories be just a mere coincidence or it is a likely case of a thorough work of research? I will let you decide, my dear readers.

Quote written by Claire Ansberry, designed by Emily Schiff-Slater and published by Rebekah Lowin 

Click here to read more on moss rose.

Shakespeare Roses

Mulets, L.E. (1903), Flower Stories: Phyllis’ Field Friends, L. C. PAGE & COMPANY.

Cr. FGrs of BoD

Parallelism of Flower Garden in Ep. 1 : Another Perspective - Breaking The News to Guardians and/or Patient.

Another parallelism in the scenes of Shwa x Jwon were found after watching a review video by two doctors on episode 1 of Hospital Playlist. 

The findings are as follows: 

1. The Patients

2. Life Span Expectancy

3. The Patients

4. The Guardians

5. The Outcome & Their Reactions

In my previous post as appended below, I wrote about Ep. 1 being the introduction of the setting/ background i.e. Yulje Medical Hospital and the man behind it, Ahn Jeong Won. Actually, there is another main figure who is related to Yulje and has also been given a special focus in Ep. 1 i.e. Chae Song Hwa. 

Similarly, when Song Hwa’s story was introduced in Ep. 2, Jeong Won was also given focus. In both episodes, their shared values, work ethics and principles have been shown in parallel that they are aligned to one another. I personally feel that this is the first love line being introduced by Shin-Lee duo. Hence, there wasn’t any 1 on 1 scene between them until episode 10. Because their introduction has been made, next is their characters’ development and what they will have to deal with at the hospital.

Cr. Medik Viral by Dr. Rafeeq & Dr. Kamal.

Expertly written 🙌

Random Post #3: How Shin PD Redefine Parallel Editing

Today, I am sharing my thoughts on the above subject. I am not a filming graduate. I just wrote this based on the little knowledge that I know from movie/drama watching. It would be great if readers with relevant background can drop a comment or two to give insights on this. 😊

Shin PD of Hospital Playlist (HP) has been known for one who doesn't take kindly to spoilers. And in his recent interview with Na PD, he clearly stated that he is not fond of the old dramatic ways of acting whereby emotions feel forced rather raw and naturally expressed. In his innovative way of doing things, I think not only will he guard his script (i.e. only give what is necessary to film a certain scene) but he will also apply a unique cinematic approach to tell the story of the lacking five in HP.

From his statement above, I personally feel that he is someone who is more keen towards adopting a new and fresh cinematic approach. It could mean that he always tries to evolve in his directing and cinematic techniques. This is further shown in HP whereby he redefined the cinematic approach/ technique called parallel editing.

College Board (2011) defined cinematic techniques as methods which are used by directors to communicate meaning and to evoke particular emotional responses in viewers. According to Moura, Gabe (2014) and Paul, Johnathan (2016), "parallel editing (cross cutting) is the technique of alternating two or more scenes that often happen simultaneously but in different locations. If the scenes are simultaneous, they occasionally culminate in a single place, where the relevant parties confront each other." The points here are:

Paul (2016) added that most films have used this technique to show that eventually the corresponding scenes will meet or have some sort of connecting action.

How does Shin redefine/ enhance the use of this technique?

Instead of filming two or more scenes simultaneously in different locations, he :

In addition to that, he keeps his primary subject(s) constant whilst he alternately adds related secondary subjects into that parallel scenes. The objective of this enhanced technique remains the same that is to give additional exposition to the narratives of the story of the main characters (Paul, 2016). In this case, Shin PD does this to give exposition on Shwa's POVs as well as to build the base for the story of Shwa and Jwon. In his post HP IV, he said "[...] aside from the story of people at the hospital, other points (i.e. story) have to be designed differently. Chae Song Hwa's mind may also be a point that can be included in the 'other' point."

Subsequently, looking at the story of the lacking five in a broader lens, more comprehensive view, our resident FG GIF-ters, @dinosaurridge and @midoring have found the output from usage of multiple parallelism techniques scattered all across S1, mainly to provide exposition on Shwa's mind as well as to show that her values and Jwon's values are aligned. Some of their findings are as followed:

The boys x Shwa office

Shwa as their emotional pillar

Shwa and her coffee mugs

Shwa's reaction post her biopsy results

Shwa's treatments when the boys dropped by her office to see her

Shwa x her personal space

Shwa x her visitors-1

Shwa x her visitors-2

These findings from Shin PD's way of applying the parallel editing technique can also be his other way to keep the story unspoiled and at the same time continue with building the suspense.

Credits:

Moura, Gabe:

Paul, Johnathan: https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/parallel-editing-hollywood-way/

I have a coffee rule for serving a special kind of coffee to a special someone. Brewing a hand drip coffee reminds me of the efforts I put in and the satisfaction I receive from the loving smile on his face as he enjoys it. It reminds me of this love in my heart that I reserve only for him, and the memories of our past. Thus, I am making this coffee only for him.

He who always kindly cleans up after we eat.

He who is always ready to serve.

He who appreciates and loves the special coffee I brew for him.

My coffee rule is me showing my love for him.

Cr. BoD

"When I think of coffee, I think of fresh mornings, companionship, a book while it rains outside, a conversation with a best friend, comfortable silence shared with someone special and warm hugs. Coffee teaches us life lessons, like the importance of taking one sip at a time and pausing every now and then to reflect on life." - Mitali Meelan

Obviously I am a biased viewer. Among all the Hospital Playlist characters, Songhwa and Jeongwon are my favorites. These two are truly altruistic people. They spend almost all of their awake time thinking about how they can be of use to others. That’s why they are nicknamed “ghost” and “Buddha”, because even their closest friends and colleagues cannot understand how a normal human being can do so much for other people. The reason why these two ultimate givers are able to keep on giving for so many years, I think, is because they know that there’s a similar soul nearby, that they are not alone, that even if they are misunderstood by everyone else, someone gets it and that’s enough.

This blog is not about changing minds. It’s about making someone out there feel less lonely. If the mutual respect and silent understanding between these two touched you in one way or another, making you smile and your heart flutter, I understand you. You are not delusional and you are not alone.

“Small things” that are kind of a big deal to Songhwa #3

An altruistic person tends to cut her/his personal desire down to the minimum so as to avoid potential conflicts between self interests and serving others. For Songhwa, the one thing she does for herself is camping. When asked if she has any selfish or materialistic wish, her reply is a good camping spot.

More than a hobby, camping ties to the core of Songhwa’s identity: being an independent individual. Camping allows her to build a small world of her own, in the midst of the great nature. A small world over which she has total control, where she can temporarily escape into, unwind and be healed.

Building this small world of her own piece by piece brings Songhwa so much joy

and she’s unapologetically proud of it.

If you truly understand her, then the necessity of a wood stove or log racks should be self-explanatory. She shouldn’t need to explain it to you — it’s her own world after all.

So it’s never just about picking up a package. Songhwa can certainly live a fulfilling life on her own. However, if she finally decides to walk this long journey called “life” with another person, I cannot envision a better scenario than the one below.

Here, she’s setting the pace, both hands in her pockets. She’s comfortable, confident. That little world of her own, represented by a wood stove too heavy for her to carry, is being held carefully in the arms of someone who knows her so well and she trusts so much.

How to love a strong independent woman?

Especially a strong independent woman who can set up a tent all by herself, in heavy rain;

who, after discovering a breast lump through self-examination, went to get a biopsy test on her own;

who is well respected in her professional life.

Do make sure her opinion is heard in group talks.

Do ask for her explicit consent.

Do take her no as a no.

Don’t patronize her.

Don’t disregard her will of dealing with things alone.

Don’t question her way of living her own life.

At the end of the day, there really are very few things that such a strong independent woman cannot handle on her own. Hence, loving her is not about what you want to do for her.

It’s about what she let you do for her.

Actor Yoo Yeon Seok:

2017 ㅡ Hedwig Robinson

2018 ㅡ Gu Dong Mae

2018/2019 ㅡ Monty Navarro

2020 ㅡ Ahn Jeong Won

2020 ㅡ Chairman Jo Seon Sa

2020 ㅡ Werther

It’s never just about a pain relief patch.

It’s about remembering that, the last time she sat in the back seat when there were five people in the car,

her neck started to hurt immediately afterwards,

and making sure that, in the next five-people-one-car situation, she gets to sit comfortably in the front.

It’s about being ultra aware of the illness that she suffers from, to the point of giving strangers tips on how to avoid it.

It’s about trying your best not to lean on her shoulder, even when you are completely drunk.

It’s about trusting her decisions and prioritizing her wellbeing.

Of course, having a pain relief patch at hand just in case she might need it is also nice.

The Little House in Songhwa’s Office

One of the objects that was given focus in Songhwa’s office is a miniature house as pointed out by dinosaurridge.

Little House - as how Songhwa’s story unfolded, this may have represented Songhwa’s wants that she mentioned when Seonbin, one of the residents, asked her: “If you had to take a year off and not work, what would you do?”

Songhwa happily answered: “I’d move to a place like Gangneung, Sokcho, or Tongyeong. I want to live in a house that’s not too big or too small just for a year. I’d love to live somewhere like that for a year. I’ll work at a hospital there.“ This was already a foreshadowing that she will fulfill her answer within the same year.

Then, we see the little house tucked in the upper shelf, hidden in plain sight. The repositioned hidden little house indicated that she made her decision, but she kept it to herself first. This situation was similar to her biopsy on a previous episode.Another parallel to this symbolism was Jeongwon’s long-kept secret that he was Daddy Long Legs, and his final decision about the priesthood. The similarity is that both had something that they’ve kept hidden until they wanted to open up about it.

Meanwhile, the difference is that Jeongwon only revealed both his decisions first to Songhwa (Ikjun found out about the DLL by accident). On the other hand, Songhwa revealed her decisions to the gang after she planned everything down to a T, before opening up.

Her sudden announcement shocked the gang. They had mixed reactions — but Songhwa was firm from the beginning: she had it all planned out without needing their input, just as she did back in her biopsy. As Seokhyung said, she decided what’s best for herself. Songhwa decided that her well-being is her top priority while doing whatever she wants to do, in a place where she wants to be. Her independence has been consistent all throughout the series.

To close, I am excited for what’s to come for Songhwa in Sokcho. I also look forward to someone visiting her there. The one who’s dream apartment is one that has a view of the ocean just like Songhwa’s new home…

In every great saga, there is always one great trio.

The Three Musketeers!

Introducing Kim Junwan

Fan #1 and the most vocal supporter of Songhwa

I always think that the actors were actually playing their characters in the following Netflix photo, because that look of Junwan is exactly how I imagine he would look at Songhwa as her most loyal friend: full of care, admiration, and pride.

( By the way, Songhwa is in this picture; she’s leaning on Andrea’s back. Great job, Netflix! )

Bonus: another big fan from the CS department