Annyeong haseyoooooo ~
Phew, preparing a blog post isn’t as easy as expected hahaa.. probably because I’m still in the process of getting used to it ☺
But anyways, I do enjoy compiling and sharing my reflections, and sincerely will do my best to make sure that I can commit posting regularly even after my semester break ends!
Following my previous post, I’ll be sharing the potential message/themes I noticed that might be surrounding this series. Once again, everything is based on MY opinions and SHOULD NOT represent anyone else’s.
There’d also be my personal reviews on this series at the end of this post, as well as stuff viewers should take note of while watching this series.
The following discussion will be slightly lengthier and complicated, but I’ll do my best to explain it~
As usual, Spoilers ahead!
Potential Themes of Religion and Fate?
Throughout the entire series, I noticed that there were several recurring moments when religion, particularly Christianity, was brought into attention. In fact, there were several occasions when this theme itself contributed to the direction of the storyline.
Some of you might think that all these actions were just ‘there’ for the sake of enriching the storyline, or as one might call “prop scenes” which are unimportant to the storyline. However, in film, there exists this theory called “Mise-en-Scene (pronounced as miz on scent)” which basically implies that everything in the frame can carry meaning. Hence, you can’t rule out the possibility that the following scenes might contain a hint from the director!
“From the craftsmen who build bookcases to the cinematographer who chooses the lightings, the mise-en-scène is the result of the collaboration of many professionals... the director is more specific with his requests and orders... All of them… have influence in the mise-en-scène.” – Gabe Moura (press here for more info)
Prayers being answered
Just like how we can’t live without our phones, prayers play an essential role in religion. Prayers are recognized as a form of communicating with God, and it also serves to reinforce one’s connection with God.
Here were several moments where prayer was featured:
1. When Seri’s sister-in-law prayed for her disappearance
At Episode 2, as Seri’s disappearance meant that her elder brother Se Jun (played by Choi Dae Hoon) could be the next potential CEO, Seri’s sister-in-law, Hye Ji (played by Hwang Woo Seul Hye) attended church to pray, in hopes that her husband could be promoted to the position “God prepared for him”.
In this scene, we’d start developing sympathy for Seri as we saw that she never got to share a real family bond with her family; here, Hye Ji prayed that Seri would “rest in peace”, already assuming that she’d be dead because she wanted her husband to be promoted.
Here's what's interesting: As you would know if you’d watched this series (you’d most likely even know this if you didn’t watch the series), but Hye Ji’s prayers were obviously not answered, because Seri was alive, and she returned to South Korea, right?
Ironically, Hye Ji’s husband Se Jun’s wishes were fulfilled instead, when he wished for his younger sister Seri’s return at Episode 10, which was precisely the episode Seri announced her “revival” in which she returned safely to South Korea.
As he was being sued for assault (I couldn’t remember why, so do enlighten me if you know), he ranted about how things would be so much easier if Seri was around, and acknowledged her competence as the company’s successor instead of their younger brother, Se Hyung (played by Park Hyoung Soo).
The moment after he said that, Hye Ji received a call and knew that Seri was alive.
2. When Insurance Agent Su Chan’s prayers were answered
I’m sure most of you would remember that hilarious exchange between insurance agent Su Chan (played by Lim Chul Soo) and Hye Ji in church at Episode 2, as both of them prayed for different outcomes loudly; Su Chan prayed for Seri’s return, in hopes that he got to keep his job while Hye Ji prioritized her husband’s promotion over Seri’s safety.
When he learnt of Seri’s return to South Korea at Episode 10, he expressed his gratefulness by reading the bible during his dinnertime with Secretary Hong (played by Ko Kyu Pil).
Feeling immensely grateful for Seri’s return, Su Chan requested to finish dinner early because he wanted to attend a prayer meeting (and received amusing glances from Secretary Hong in return, HAHA).
*The importance of prayer meeting was so that believers could be able to strengthen and validate each other for their faith in God together.
3. Seri’s wishes answered
By the end of Episode 10, Seri was already starting to settle down in South Korea. Despite her comfort of being able to enjoy 24/7 electricity, being able to regain control over her company, and peace without Chil Su’s naggings (hah) , she realized that life was really different without Jung Hyeok, and that he was one of the only person who genuinely cared for her. She wished to restart everything and meet him one more time.
Just right after she made that wish, Jung Hyeok appeared. This is actually a really typical, cliché drama scene that happens most of the time in k-dramas but yea it served to proof this topic too!
Fun fact: Did you know that in Korean culture, first snow meant that every wish made during that period will come true? If you don’t, now you do!
And yes, this scene occurred during the first snow.
4. Seri’s Close Death
After Seri was shot by Cheol Gang at the end of Episode 13, Jung Hyeok and his comrades were panicked, unsure of what to do next. The last words spoken from this episode was Joo Meok (played by Yoo Su Bin)’s cry for someone to help them.
And Seri survived in Episode 14.
(Ngl, I still tear up whenever I re-watch this scene)
Was Seri’s survival part of God’s will?
Themes of Fate/Destiny
Based on sociology’s definition of religion , religion is a social institution that involves a unified system of beliefs and practises that recognised the sacred.
Recognising something as ‘sacred’ is about seeing a certain place, object, or experience, as special and something that separates it from daily life. In this case, for this drama, what was deemed ‘sacred’ was fate.
Fate, also known as destiny, is somewhat a common usage in k-dramas. However, fate can also be applied strongly to a religious context. From a religious point of perspective, fate is God’s plans for our lives; in other words, God’s will (sounds familiar?). Some believes that our path has already been predestined by God, and that even if we make mistakes, God will guide us to the right path if we maintain our faith in Him (you can read more about fate here).
In fact, the whole starting point of this series started from the interruption of fate itself, as Seri and Jung Hyeok had already crossed paths with each other in Switzerland before they officially knew each other.
Jung Hyeok himself started acknowledging the presence of fate after he found out that the girl he saved from attempting suicide in Switzerland years ago was Seri all along.
(Episode 12 epilogue)
2. When Joo Meok met the actress of his dreams
At Episode 13, as promised by Seri from the earlier chapters, Joo Meok got to meet his favorite cast from his favorite South Korean drama Stairway to Heaven (once again, another potential reference to God), Choi Ji Woo.
We all deserve a friend like Se Ri too!!
When Joo Meok asked if people who love each other would always meet again, no matter the distance,
Ji Woo reassured him that true love always finds each other, no matter what. Because what’s meant to be will be.
And, yes, if you finished watching the entire series, you’d know that it all ended well .. :’)
3. During the casts’ Interview
During an interview from the Philippine Daily Inquire newspaper website, actress Son Ye Jin, who played the role of Seri, proclaimed that destiny itself brought her to this script. When she was presented with the script, she was immediately intrigued by the various emotions and was already confident that she could pull it off.
Here’s the original translated transcript:
“I really wanted to do it. I think it was destiny that I came upon this drama. The characters, the situations, and also the sadness and pain the characters suffer later on. This series conveys a variety of emotions, so it was an easy yes for me,” – Son Ye Jin
Which makes me wonder: was Ye Jin asked to particularly mention destiny for her interview, or could this all just be a coincidence?
(It might also be a result of translation differences, so do keep that in mind hahaah)
Credit: Breathlesssurvival’s blog
The Discussion of Faith
Once again, I want to make sure that everyone knows that these points are solely made from MY opinion. It’s all based on MY understanding and interpretation of this movie, hence should not represent anyone else’s.
Continuing on from what I was saying..
From a religious context, faith is confidence in what we work for and the assurance that the lord is working, even though we cannot see it.
Even though the following points did not carry any references to God, I believe that the writer was implicitly applying the belief of faith in it, judging from previous observations.
It’s difficult ( and I’m kindda struggling LOL ) to really explain this, but I hope you’ll get my point after reading below:
Jung Hyeok’s Path to Faith
While actress Ye Jin herself mentioned about Seri’s significant character development from the series, I found that Jung Hyeok’s growth suits this topic I’m covering more, so I’ll be focusing more on him here instead~
Jung Hyeok was born a privileged child. Having a father with such high authority and power in the army force enabled his family to be well-off financially. He never had to face issues the majority of people from his country had to deal with for an almost daily basis: poverty, food rationing, lack of electricity, etc.
He could even pursue his passion OVERSEAS, which was to become a famous worldwide pianist.
Credit: HaiBunda
However, despite having such privileges and power, he’d always kept a low profile of himself because he didn’t see the need to prove anything, comfortable knowing that he had his father behind him.
That was until his elder brother Ri Mu Hyeok (played by Ha Suk Jin) died from a tragic car crash.
After Mu Hyeok’s death, Jung Hyeok placed the blame heavily on himself for not being able to protect his brother. This might’ve led him to want to strive for perfection in his life, as he couldn’t stand the thought of something getting out of hand because of him again.
Throughout the entire series, not only had he saved Seri multiple times from close death, but also went through multiple lengths to make sure she’s safe. Take his secret escape to South Korea to catch Cheol Gang, for example. The fact that he risked crawling through an old mine that might collapse anytime, and travelled over 20km within a day also might have portrayed his obsession to protect Seri.
Up to this point, Jung Hyeok believed that for things to work out, he’d need to put in the effort himself. He believed that he had to be in control of things, so that everything goes well according to what he planned. He also had a strong ego, assuming everything he does is the best solution.
Feeling that it was his fault for his brother’s death, he opted to avoid burdening or causing trouble to anyone because of his actions. Hence at Episode 15, he lied to NIS Agent Kim (played by Yoo Jung Ho) about his arrival in South Korea in order to protect Seri and his comrades.
However, at the cost of ensuring things goes as planned, he failed to realise the consequences of his actions; he refused Seri’s assistance, and insisted on being punished for what he did. Jung Hyeok’s insistence for always wanting to carry all the blame was the last straw for Seri, as she collapsed due to the overwhelming pressure.
It was then only after Seri’s close death (again!) that Jung Hyeok realised the consequences of his stubbornness and insistence of doing everything alone (what’s with kdramas and deaths LOL!).
He learnt that he cannot be in control of everything and sometimes, it’s okay to let go and let fate decide.
As he placed his trust in fate (or God), he reminded Seri to never stop believing that they’d meet again, as they both parted ways before meeting each other again several years later.
Mark 11:24 - "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.”
In the bible, there were multiple stories covering various prolific followers achieving victory, or success, through their faith and trust in the Lord despite not knowing what their future held (Here were some I found).
Related References
Here’s what I noticed from Hyun Bin’s previous role as Yoo Jin Woo in the drama series Memories of The Alhambra (and yes, I’ll be disclosing a vital part of the storyline):
If you haven’t or have no intentions watching this series, here’s a brief recap:
Memories of the Alhambra (알함브라 궁전의 추억) started with a game developer Se Ju (played by ChanYeol of EXO) contacting the CEO of a famous investment company, Yoo Jin Woo (played by Hyunbin) about selling the game he created to him before disappearing mysteriously. Jin Woo then made it his life mission to locate Se Ju, upon discovering that the game Se Ju invented could harm and kill people in real life.
As Jin Woo leveled up from the game Se Ju developed, he eventually reached the final stage which could lead to Se Ju’s hiding spot. However, it all came down to the cost of ‘deleting’ his game character, which also meant erasing his existence in real life because the virtual environment of the game was already interconnected with his real life.
During Episode 15, as Jin Woo submitted to his eventual fate being “deleted” as a bug (which meant the removal of his existence virtually and in real life) by Emma (played by Park Shin Hye), a game character also invented by Se Ju (played by ChanYeol).
Jin Woo declared his decision to put his trust in the Lord, admitting that he never believed in God until that day.
(Jin Woo making the sign of the cross)
So, what do you think? Was the director trying to persuade us to have faith in religion, and to pray when you have doubts? Was he acknowledging his faith and was expressing it through the characters?
P.S: There was also another Memories of Alhambra reference at Episode 12!!
Personal Reviews Of This Series
IMPORTANT NOTE:
DO NOT EVER CONSIDER TREATING THIS DRAMA AS A REFLECTION OF REALITY, BECAUSE IT ISN'T.
Ri Jung Hyeok’s portrayal of being the perfect man every woman wants is unrealistic. He was rich (in North Korean standards), tall, handsome, an amazing cook, and also an amazing fighter. it’s impossible to find someone like him in real life because it just seemed like he was good at EVERYTHING. He's too perfect..
Even a famous North Korean defector, Kang Nara claimed that if there really was someone as perfect as Jung Hyeok, she wouldn’t even consider escaping (LOL).
She also claimed that some of the events portrayed in the series were not a realistic portrayal of North Korea. For example, the drama made it seem like it was easy to escape North Korea, when she in fact had to risk being shot while swimming across the borders.
Video Credits: The World of Dave’s Youtube Channel
Another North Korean defector Park Yoo Sung also addressed the fact that some events portrayed were exaggerated, such as the grasshopper merchants rushing to sell their supplies, at the scene where Jung Hyeok and Seri were travelling to Pyongyang by train (watch this for a more detailed explanation.)
However, Yoo Sung acknowledged that there were also correct representations of North Korean life from that scene, such as the fact that it’s common for trains to stop for a day or even a week due to their electric shortages. He also praised the series for the accurate stops the train made.
Credits to Yon Tong TV
Besides this, Kang Nara also praised the writers’ research as most of the show accurately depicted North Korean lives too, such as the fact that random house searches would be conducted at random hours, and that furnaces were also used to warm the apartment instead of a heater (follow her on Instagram: @ kang_naraa )!
All in all, while there were inaccurate representations of reality throughout this series, I enjoyed it overall. I think that this series provided a fresh breath of air, as it gave us more insight of North Korea, and it’s also one of the few rare dramas which portrayed peacefulness over the usual, typical portrayal of North Korea in films. But yes, rememeber to not take everything shown in the series as it is!
Personal ratings: 8/10
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If you’d made it here, thank you for spending your time reading this, I appreciate it a lot! Do give me some feedbacks on how to improve, or share with me your opinions of this!
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