I’m so happy I checked out Monstar, because it led to one of the most relaxing recapping projects in a long time. No see-sawing emotions, no heightened expectations begetting freefalling disappointment, it was just a very assuring and easy-to-digest drama from beginning to end. The final episode went out with a relative whimper that capped an overall slowdown in the second half that unfortunately allowed this drama to not tap into its full potential. But what it did deliver was ultimately satisfying for me, a dish that was funny and emotional, sweet and entertaining. There were a lot of lovely moments in this drama, so much so that I am strangely okay with all its narrative misses. In the end, so much was left unresolved and unspoken, but the drama lets us know these people we have grown to love and care for will be fine even as the camera turns off. Rather than a hectic rush to tie up all the loose ends, episode 12 was oddly melancholy and ordinary, which was rather fitting since this drama was about a bunch of sad kids trying to chase away their blues and found solace in music and friendship.
Yong Jun Hyung as Yoon Seol Chan was the main reason I fell madly for this drama initially, and eventually I loved the entire cast and each wonderfully realized performance. It was only fitting that the final episode belonged to Seol Chan, his growth throughout this drama came to a head when he tried to protect his friends in Color Bar, and finally in his thoughtful and sincere connection with Se Yi. We don’t know if he’ll be able to date her over the craziness of his fangirls, but we know that he will always see her and reach out for her no matter what stands in their way. Sun Woo and Seol Chan’s love-hate relationship gets a fitting non-ending because it really was never a big deal, and ultimately all the kids and even the adults let go of some misunderstandings and self-flagellation and learn to keep moving on. In the end, music and friendship was the central themes of this story and it wrapped up with the same themes as the focus. I appreciated all the little things Monstar did right and only wished it could do more because it had so much potential. One wonders if Mnet was setting it up for a sequel seeing as so much was left hanging, Whether that happens or not, as a viewer I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the journey of Color Bar. A fond farewell to the cutest K-drama I’ve watched this year.
Episode 12 recap:
Se Yi confesses her feelings for Seol Chan to Sun Woo and turns to walk away. He calls her name with a joke that she dropped some money, but really he just wants to say something to end the awkward mood. He apologizes for not being able to walk her home today and leaves.
Na Na is singing with some Color Bar members in the basement and elsewhere Seol Chan is rapping. Her balled and his rap blend together while Se Yi and Sun Woo mope on their way home. Seol Chan finishes and leaves the studio passing Ari on the way.
Seol Chan is practicing the guitar and composing a song. His fingers are all raw from practicing. His fingers are torn up from practicing so much.
Se Yi gets a text from Eun Ha with the picture she took of Color Bar at their launch party in the basement. She smiles and then zooms into Seol Chan’s face and her smile fades.
The entertainment PD is pissed off after he learns that Seol Chan won’t be part of the Color Bar performance, despite his assistant explaining that Seol Chan’s agency won’t let him do it. He decides to up the ante and mess around with Color Bar. Se Yi asks her mom about her dad’s band mate from high school and her mom learns that Se Yi has been hanging around Ji Woong all this time.
Se Yi and Seol Chan walk to class and he asks about her weekend while revealing he had to record a song he didn’t want to do. He teases her for not calling and wonders if she hung out with another dude.
Seol Chan teases Se Yi for being a player and when he points at her she notices his ripped up fingers. She grabs his hand and asks what happened? He quickly pulls it away and makes an excuse.
Sun Woo has arrived with the rest of Color Bar and see this final exchange. Sun Woo purposely steps between Seol Chan and Se Yi and reminds everyone to adjourn for practice after school for the performance.
Sun Woo walks off leaving everyone weirded out by his suddenly assertive ways. Eun Ha wonders what’s gotten into Sun Woo while Seol Chan recollects that Sun Woo claims to not have given up yet.
Seol Chan calls Sun Woo out and tells him to stay away from Se Yi. He didn’t want to have to say it so bluntly. Sun Woo isn’t cowed and won’t give up unless Seol Chan finds a way to deal with his fans to be with Se Yi. Sun Woo leaves and Seol Chan decides he can’t let them use the performance as an excuse to keep hanging out.
Seol Chan joins the rest of Color Bar in the basement for practice. He is here as their music arrangement coordinator. Kyu Dong, Do Nam, and Eun Ha all smile and happily welcome his help.
After practice ends, Seol Chan and Sun Woo both ask to hang with Se Yi. Eun Ha steers everyone else away and the other three walks off.
Se Yi’s mom arrives at Ji Woong’s place and asks him why he didn’t tell her that he had met Se Yi already. He reminds her that she told him to pretend like they didn’t know each other. Mom says Se Yi misunderstood what happened that night of the accident, but she’s still accepting her own punishment because she went to see Ji Woong despite knowing her husband didn’t like it.
Ji Woong reveals that he blamed Mom for the accident, and all this time thought that she and her husband lived happily while his life was ruined. Then he learned from Se Yi that her dad died that same night. He asks if she is not going to clear the misunderstanding with Se Yi? Mom doesn’t plan to.
Se Yi sits in a coffee shop and looks out the window to where Sun Woo and Seol Chan are facing off. Seol Chan calls Sun Woo immature and Sun Woo is fine with it since Seol Chan always thought he was immature anyways. Plu Seol Chan is immature so Sun Woo is just behaving like him. They continue to bicker and Se Yi watches them. Seol Chan says he’ll show Sun Woo what is the true meaning of immature and then waves his hands in Sun Woo’s face to block him from seeing Se Yi. LOL, both Se Yi and Sun Woo are like “sigh……”
Sun Woo walks home and gets a text from Na Na. He tells her that he is practicing letting go for when the day comes that he has to.
Joon Hee tells Teacher Dokko that All for One will be holding closed door practices, so even she doesn’t know what they are planning for their performance. Eun Ha hears about this and talks with Do Nam and Kyu Dong about why All for One is so secretive. Eun Ha cackles that perhaps their trump card is a really lame thing. She clicks her fingers and a fantasy sequence of Jae Rok, Hyo Rin, and Joon Hee doing a ridiculous kid song performance appears.
Seol Chan is at Color Bar practice when he gets a call from his Mom that his agency took his stuff back to the dorms. She asks if he won’t consider living at home from now on?
Seol Chan is practicing the guitar with Ji Woong and he asks when he plans to play for Se Yi. Seol Chan doesn’t know where to do it, he can’t do it out on the streets since he’ll attract attention. Seol Chan reveals that he really idolized a past music producer named J. Han.
The PD is going through Color Bar members to see who to use for their expose. They exclude Kyu Dong, Eun Ha, Na Na, and Sun Woo, until only Se Yi remains. The assistant reveals that Se Yi’s father was friends with the former music producer J. Han and the kids are currently practicing at his basement. The assistant isn’t keen what the PD wants to do and he’s fine if she tells Seol Chan about his intentions. Seol Chan hears about what the PD is doing and he calls the assistant back. Sun Woo overhears this and tries to find out about why the PD is interested in the personal lives of the kids of Color Bar. Seol Chan says he’ll handle it and leaves.
Seol Chan confronts the PD and tells him not to use his friends just because he can’t do the show. He says Color Bar won’t perform but the PD reminds him that his friends wants to do it.
Seol Chan meets with his agency president and asks for the favor. The president won’t do it unless Seol Chan gets a top star to perform. Seol Chan asks Ari for a favor, to plead with top star Stella to perform. He agrees to do the duet with her but she says it needs to be something else.
Seol Chan runs into Joon Hee at school and is goaded about not performing. Despite Seol Chan being a star, he can’t do whatever he wants. Whereas Joon Hee can.
Sun Woo approaches Joon Hee and wonders why they are being so secretive. Joon Hee points out that Seol Chan is dropping out of Color Bar but the PD won’t allow that to happen since it’ll affect the ratings. Sun Woo recalls Seol Chan’s conversation on the phone and realizes the PD is already doing something to force Seol Chan to participate.
Sun Woo confirms with Seol Chan that his dropping out has led to the PD plotting to out the secret of Se Yi. Seol Chan promises to handle it. Sun Woo warns Seol Chan that if Se Yi gets hurt, he will not let Seol Chan off the hook.
Seol Chan goes to asks Ari for the favor again but she’s still haughty and pissy. He is serious and sincere and even offers to kiss her shoes like she demanded he do long ago. She tells him to stop and is pretty taken aback at why he is going so far for this. He can tell she will do it and thanks her.
Seol Chan tells the kids that he will do the show with them. Sun Woo pulls Seol Chan aside and asks what happened. They bicker some more and then head in to run through a full practice together.
The agency president is pissed that he had to relent and allow Seol Chan to perform with Color Bar. Manager Hong tells him to just enjoy the performance.
The PD is thrilled to hear that top star Stella and also Man in Black will perform on the show. He is impressed with Seol Chan’s star clout. The assistant wants to not make the expose on the kids now but the PD says make it anyways since it involves dirt about former music producer J. Han. The dots are connected that J. Han was friends with Min Se Yi’s dad.
Turns out that night Se Yi’s mom goes to hand her husband’s CD to Ji Woong. He’s a jerk to her since she picked her husband over him. He takes the CD and then allows the girl to hitch a ride with him.
Joon Hee hears from Hyo Rin that the PD has sent people to school asking all about Se Yi. He tells the PD to stop, All for One doesn’t need this added help to beat Color Bar, especially by stooping so low.
Sun Woo is preparing to head to practice but Seol Chan takes Se Yi away saying that they can’t practice today. He shoots a barb at Sun Woo, asking if Sun Woo has ever taken his girlfriend home before?
Seol Chan takes Se Yi home and she greets his mom on her way in. Seol Chan leads Se Yi by his band to his room. They sit down and she notices he framed her note. She spots the sheep and asks for it back. She sees a pictures of young Seol Chan with his family and says he is really cute.
Se Yi says that Seol Chan looks like his mom. She points out that even people unrelated can look alike by being together and enjoying the same things together and experiencing the same emotions. Seol Chan softly asks if she thinks they look alike now. Awwww. Se Yi quickly scrambles to the window and looks out shyly. Seol Chan smiles.
Seol Chan’s mom comes in with refreshments and is so happy Seol Chan brought a friend over. She walks out and leaves the door open a crack and Seol Chan closes it. She comes back later with more food and keeps trying to leave the door open a little bit, she read in a book that when a son brings a girlfriend home to keep the door ajar. Seol Chan closes the door and tells his mom it’s not what she thinks.
Seol Chan grabs his guitar and asks Se Yi to forgive his rough skills, but this is how he will repay her for trampling all over her dad’s song. He wrote this song just for her. Seol Chan plays the guitar and sings to Se Yi. She sits there and listen to him with a smile as he sings about being her partner and being there for her.
Seol Chan’s mom leans against the door and listens, comforted that he’s grown up. Seol Chan walks Se Yi home and they gently wave goodbye at her door. Seol Chan goes home and remembers that he never asked Se Yi whether she liked his serenade more than when Sun Woo sang to her.
Seol Chan’s mom comes into his room and apologizes for what she did in the past. Sending him back to the orphanage because she wasn’t ready to be a mom. She loves him and will continue to try her best. She asks that he call her mom instead of the more formal mother.
Teacher Dokko breaks the bad news to Color Bar that the song they want to use is nixed because of a license problem. They are upset but realize they have one day to whip something together. They put their faith in Seol Chan to arrange a new song.
Ji Woong watches Color Bar frantically practice and then gets a visit from Nawin. Turns out he’s the younger brother of the dead girl and Ji Woong has been sending him money for years. He wants to become a singer in Korea because that was his sister’s dream and he just wanted to meet Ji Woong and tell him that it’s okay. He asks Ji Woong to forgive himself and stop sending money anymore.
Seol Chan and Se Yi are exhausted from the practice and sit down at a café. He’s happy to be alone and she orders cakes for him that she says are filled with nutrients. She feeds him a bite and he takes it and smiles. She grins and he asks if she did it with Sun Woo, too. Se Yi laughs at his petty jealousy.
Sun Woo gets called out by Na Na using her 8th coupon and they meet in the basement. She brought her guitar and he asks if she has something to say to him. She can’t say it in front of others and wants to know how much longer her other coupons are good for. He’s cold and says it expires today.
Na Na cries and asks him to sing her a song then, a song of his choice. He said he wanted to make her laugh before. But Sun Woo chooses to sing a sad ballad and Na Na calls him a bad guy and leaves. She cries her way home. When Sun Woo finishes singing, he spots a bag that Na Na left for him.
Se Yi heads out to the music program and her mom tells her to do well. The stage is being set and everyone is getting ready. Na Na and Sun Woo see each other and are cordial. Seol Chan sits down next to Se Yi and Sun Woo comes and shoves Seol Chan aside to sit in the middle. Se Yi gets up and walks away.
Se Yi happens upon the entertainment program assistants talking about how an expose on her was nixed by Joon Hee’s dad. Apparently the big secret was that Se Yi was the cause of her dad’s accident, but she lost her memory so doesn’t know. That triggers Se Yi’s memory and turns out that night she was fidgeting with the radio knob in the car when her dad told her to stop, and his momentary lapse resulted in the accident. But the real cause of her dad’s death was that her dad wrapped himself around Se Yi and blunted her impact so he died instantly while she survived. Yikes. Se Yi runs away in horror while Sun Woo and Seol Chan both see this and can’t reach her in time.
Seol Chan gets into the car and goes first to Ji Woong’s place but can’t find her. Sun Woo is tasked with telling the rest of Color Bar that something happened with Se Yi. Seol Chan finds Se Yi at their park bench and she’s crying. He sits down and she apologizes but she can’t perform like this. She erroneously blamed her mom when it was herself all along that caused her dad’s death.
Seol Chan reveals that he had had three names since he was born. He was abandoned at the orphanage and they gave him a name. When he was adopted the first time he got another name. But his mom gave him back because she couldn’t handle raising a kid, and that was when he cried because he knew what it felt like to be abandoned then. But later she came back and took him again, and he got a third name. He hurt so much then, but he realized that he could survive it, because he understood then that god only gives us the challenges that he knows we can weather. He sigh that they are only eighteen and already they have endured so much.
The music program begins and the various acts perform while Color Bar waits anxiously back stage. Do Nam reveals to Color Bar that he just heard that All for One’s trump card is a guy named Daniel Park. He was a sunbae of their high school and now is a singer in England.
All for One take the stage with a rock orchestral performance with No Min Woo making a cameo as Daniel Park. The performance is rocking and the crowd goes wild. Color Bar watches and wonders why Joon Hee allowed a trump card to save their performance. Do Nam thinks Joon Hee has pride, he’s showing that if he wants to he can pull out all the stops to win.
Seol Chan and Se Yi arrive at the studio and get out of the car together. As they rush inside Seol Chan is mobbed by his fangirls and his hand is jostled free of Se Yi’s hand. They are separated by the fangirls and keep reaching for each other.
Sun Woo gets a text that they are here and he rushes outside to get them. He sees the mob of girls around Seol Chan and Se Yi trying to get to him.
Seol Chan manages to grab Se Yi’s hand and runs inside with her. He arrives in the Color Bar waiting room happily with Se Yi. Except Eun Ha is horrified and says “psycho?!?” Seol Chan looks back and turns out he grabbed the hand of the psycho girl from episode 1 that kissed him.
Sun Woo runs in with the real Se Yi in hand. Color Bar is called to perform and Se Yi still looks uncertain. Seol Chan grabs her shoulders and says to do the performance AND cry if she wants to.
Color Bar takes the stage and starts to perform. I love that they are wearing their school uniforms open with different t-shirts underneath, and everyone wears a red scarf wrapped around their right wrist like a bracelet. Se Yi is crying throughout the entire performance, which has Sun Woo and Na Na taking the lead vocals but everyone chimes in with a small solo.
The performance is a more inclusive and cohesive one that the first, with Do Nam on drums and Kyu Dong on keyboard and Eun Ha on the xylophone. The song ends and the crowd breaks into wild applause. Seol Chan smiles until he looks over and sees Se Yi sobbing, and Sun Woo looks over and sees it too.
Some time later, Se Yi goes to see Ji Woong and he asks if she’s here by herself. Se Yi says they will all come. He asks if they won and she tells him to guess.
Sun Woo looks at the picture of the Color Bar group that Eun Ha snapped and smiles. He opens the window and takes out the bag Na Na left for him. It’s the jacket he tried on for her. He puts it on and says to himself that he didn’t think it would suit him, implying that he’s surprised now that it does suit him. Sun Woo’s voiceover that love arrived even when it wasn’t clear, when they were just kids and now teens. A montage of all the key moments in this drama flash by.
Se Yi sits by herself on the steps on Ji Woong’s garden. She’s crying softly and then Seol Chan walks over and quietly sits down next to her. They turn to look at each other.
Seol Chan reaches over and wipes away her tear. She smiles at him and he smiles back at her. The camera pulls back to the two of them sitting quietly on the garden steps. Together in contentment and silence, the two people who started off arguing the every single moment they were together.
The credits play and its all behind the scenes pictures of the cast and crew filming Monstar. Then we see everyone from the cast singing the end credits song and its just adorable. All close and happy like a genuine bunch of high school friends. Kudos to a wonderful production for creating such a warm and heartfelt drama.
Oh lordy.. I am going to be a mess. I love the quiet moments in this show. Thats when it excelled for me.
so did they win or not, they didn’t tell the result of who is the winner or not. i hope that color band will win however i didn’t like it when the first battle where they lost where i feel that they should win. whereas this battle all for one has the thump card which is no min woo, i think this battle is somewhat in the middle. SO who is the winner and why didn;t kim nana and sunwoo be together. i guess because they are student that is going to the music industry. they can’ love even if they wanted to. sad sobs…sobs…
the first battle they won alright its just that stupid headmaster who chose All for One since he’s been rooting for them this entire time. and besides use your imagination they already left hints along the way throughout the episode.
Thanks for the recap Ms Koala!
Oh I like the first song with Nana and Seol Chan singing/rapping. And I’m going to miss watching this show. Open ending like this, I’m okay with. They are young, still in HS, who knows where their lives/goals going to take them?
Some people come into our lives and leave a deep mark that changes us while others breeze by like the wind.
🙂
I love this drama….
SeolChan was like a walk in the park for JunHyung..
I love it!!!!!
I still wanted a close ended story but then again, they are atill in high school so life starts there but a whole new adventure is ahead.
Thanks Koala, for the recap and your comments. This ended up being my most favorite drama ever. I don’t know why I couldn’t see any flaws in it, unlike most everyone else in the various forums. I thought each episode was perfect, and I loved this finale.
Bye, Seolchan, Seyi, and the gang. Live well. *sigh* *tear*
Binmom, at least we get to follow junhyung and be fangrls for beast 🙂
Haha, yes! If you see a middle-aged woman at a Beast concert who’s pretending to be a chaperone, that’s me — smile and wave! 🙂
and if you see an inappropriately dressed middle aged woman that might be me! say hi!! haha
I don’t know if am middle age (30) but am bless with being short, and looking younger. Yet I’ll will also be in the audience cheering with you all. Beauty 4 ever!!!
batoost for life!
I just wanted to say thank you for recapping. Your love and obsession over the earlier episodes was what led me to check it out.
It’s a sweet drama totally worth my time. Yes I know it’s an open ended ending… but since I actually got to see some of the bullied teenagers get some recognition. I don’t like American teen shows because it shows them necking, taking drugs or basically being rude to their parents. Here there are elements of it but done Korean style. So I got my teenage drama fix but without all the expletives laden lines.
Thank you. Now I am going to memorize half the songs and get the OST.
Thanks Ms Koala for recapping this drama . Open ended ending? Why not? After all they are bunch of high school kids. Wish there is a Special ep though to tie up the loose ends….
Oh wait, I’ve thought of one criticism — SUNWOO’S PANTS. What’s up with the flood pants and no socks look??? Young people and their fashion these days! *shakes fist* Get off my lawn!
Im with you. it looks awful, or is it they don’t have good long pants for tall people in Korea. It happens also with Lee Min Ho.
Thank you Ockoala for the recap!!!
Okay Koala, Thank you so much for your amazing recaps of Monstar. I’m 100% sure that after watching the last episode, I’m gonna watch this all over again from the first episode until the last minute of this show.
This drama is one of my favorites right now and the best drama of 2013 so far (on my own opinion hehe). I loved that the drama ended in a quiet yet in a meaningful way. Se Yi and Seol Chan will be my OTP forever. And Seol Chan will be forever in my heart and soul.
Junhyung!!! No words can express how I love you right now. Shadow is the best lol. It’s amazing how Junhyung can manage his time in doing this drama, doing songs for B2st, doing dance practices with Man in Black and B2st, doing concerts etc. Awww I really love him for being a hardworking one.
I’m really looking forward for other casts’ next projects like Ha Yeon Soo and Kang Ha Neul who have already dramas next in line. I hope all of the casts will be given a good drama after this one so their talent will not be wasted. (ehem Heirs lol)
Okay enough said. I will surely miss Monstar. 🙁 The characters, the music… arghh can’t imagine Fridays without Monstar.
Color Bar Fighting! Monstar Fighting! B2st Fighting! (haha)
you forgot junhyung fighting! haha. i know right? ALL of them work soo hard. but to do film a drama while producing and composing for a whole album (with co composer kim tae joo) and learning dance moves and practising them and promotions and adverts. its so stupid but i worry about them breaking down from exhaustion!!
Thanks Koala for recapping this show. I hope that I will able to come back here to read your recap for another great show 🙂
Thank you for the recaps!!! ^^
Just hoped this show had twelve more episodes to go— ok— maybe another 4…I enjoyed the music and how teenage angst was shown…
You’re welcome, everyone! I’m happy to share the Monstar love with everyone through my recaps. 😀
Did they win? Did they lose? Are Seol Chan and Se Yi together?
I feel like there’s so much more they could have done a better job ending this series. I loved it, I did, but there’s quite a bit of questions left unanswered.
Awww!! Thanks Koala for recapping the entire series! it was such a joyous ride, even if it did get slow towards the end, it was still a lovely little drama.
btw, i know this is going to sound really nit picky (& cos i rewatched this bit in the episodes a few times now! lol) – but did anyone else notice that the shirts that ColorBar wore (under their uniforms) for their final song all matched – as in same design, plain shirt with an animal print? And the print on each of their shirt I’m guessing is supposed to reflect their character? ie,
Seol Chan: a Star on it which is cos he’s a Star (duh!)
Sun Woo: a lion, cos he’s the class president maybe? or just his strength and how he takes care really of everyone in his own way?
Eun Ha: from that i can tell is a bird or a duck – maybe ugly duckling?
Se-yi: is hard to see, but it looks like a bear, cos it’s cutesy or a lion cub? cos she’s just as fearless as a lion!?
DoNam: has a monkey with glasses, that had a sad face
Kyu Dong: has a pig on his shirt
Nana: is the hardest to figure out! eesh, but it looked like she was wearing a black shirt and so it was harder to spot the print on her shirt.. but cos i liked the Nana-SunWoo ship, i’m going to pretend that it’s the same print as SunWoo’s but in reverse!
I could be totally wrong and just made all that up, but despite all that, it was a nice touch from the wardrobe dept 😉
Thanks again, Ms Koala! I loved reading your recaps throughout the series! I can’t believe it’s been 12 wks since it’s started, and it’s now over!! 🙁 I’ll def miss these kids, and I actually don’t even mind the open ending.. it makes it all the more bittersweet, and lets us finish the stories ourselves.
Now, I’m off to watch the entire series all over again! hehe!
The print on Nana’s shirt is of a girl – it’s inversed – so the hair and details are white while the background is black.
You can see it more clearly here: http://couch-kimchi.com/2013/08/02/monstar-episode-12-finale-final-performance/
I think Seyi’s shirt has a lamb print on it. And I agree that Sun Woo’s shirt has a lion probably because he’s the class pres.
But the shirts are really cute. i hope they sell it as fan merchandise. 😀
Oh wow, thanks!!!
yeah it is easier to see the shirt on that pic. And I agree that Se-Yi’s is a lamb. I thought it might’ve been when I was looking at it initially given that they’ve associated her with it throughout the entire series, but it was soo hard to tell during the performance!
But yes, the shirts are super cute! 🙂
I loved the open ending! The lives of these characters continue to live on, love, grow old, and it’s ok to to not know now how it all ends. Maybe Sun Woo returns Na Na’s affections. Maybe Seol Chan and Se Yi stay together. Eun Ha could be a writer or journalist. Kyu Dong could be that teacher who cares for all his students. Do Nam might be gruff teddy bear Ajusshi that everyone loves. Whatever their stories are, I wish them the best because they are wonderful.
This is called good wrapping up!
thanks for the recap as always!!!!…I think the ending was but apt since they are all bunch of high school kids…the same way when we were high school…lots of things which we wanted to have a perfect ending, but couldn’t have it since well, basically because we were still highschoolers… 🙂
Thanks a lot for your recap MONSTAR again, I like your site since it first time I want to know the next episode of this drama before it translated to my country language. First of all I don’t now why I like this drama so much. But your recap was ensure me that is this “the cutist drama of the year”. And I still your fan site anyway.
Does anyone else find it ridiculous that SeYi is supposedly responsible for the accident?! First of all, if her dad died and she lost her memories… then how does anyone know if she was playing with the radio. Second of all, the driver is responsible for driving safely no matter what the passenger does.
Love this drama and thanks for the recaps. The open ended ending does provide the viewers ways to speculate about the characters they love. It works because they are still in high school and everyone agrees that the color bar are just starting their journey in life albeit some of them have already gone through gripping situations that a few may never experience in their lifetime. Oh what to do on Fridays without our Star, Lamb and the rest…guess re-watching the drama is the thing to do. 😀
Thanks for your enthusiasm on the recaps, it makes for a fun read.
I really enjoyed this drama but the ending not so much. Loved most of the music except in the last episode. Oh well. Why were they so stingy with only one kiss? How did it cheer SeYi up for Seol Chan to tell her HIS problems while she was sobbing her eyes out feeling guilty for her Dad’s death? I agree with the above that she was in no way responible for her Dad’s death anyway!
Two things I would have changed: Seol Chan would have grabbed Seyi’s hand not that other girl’s! Grrr…. He would have kissed her at the end not wiped away an unexplained tear.
Why do the endings almost always disappoint???? Sigh………..
I know they are kids, can not kissing alot 5555. However I still confirm I love the main story so much. Repeat watching about 10 times in this period and feel crazy and still follow Junhyung on BEAST now on….and look foward to see HaNuel and YeonSoon next project as well.
I know it is not common for Korean dramas …but I hope they do a special episode in a few months time…
Can I interrupt the praise with some dour criticism? Okay? Okay.
I can tell the difference between a Sequel/Season 2 Hook and unresolved threads. I was pretty satisfied with some of the hooks, because they did the proper thing and wrapped things up while opening new potential threads. So here come the “ambiguous plotlines” that I liked:
* Who won? Seyi said “guess”. But what she’s really saying is “it doesn’t matter”. Because the rivalry with A41 was NEVER the main focus or drive of the series. Had she given an answer, she just would have made it cliche, whether or not Colorbar was victorious. Instead, the writers made the right choice and kept it away from the spotlight.
* How will Seyi deal with knowing about the nature of her father’s death? We don’t know how – we only know THAT she’ll deal with it, but most importantly, she will deal with it with Seolchan by her side, supporting her every step of the way. The question of HOW is left to speculation. And THAT, my friends, is how you do a sequel hook.
* I was never a fan of the SC x SY pairing, but I really liked how their interaction was depicted in this episode. I’m a fan of “show don’t tell”, and that car ride really showed a lot about their relationship (as did the final tear-wiping scene). I only wish that Seyi would have at one point leaned her head into SC’s shoulder, as that would be the ultimate statement of “I feel safe with you”, the same way SC felt secure enough with her to tell his deep down dark dirty secret. (OMGHEZADOPTED?!!?) That would have been the cherry on top of the SC x SY sundae.
* As a longtime SW x Nana shipper… I was not disappointed in the result at all! SW’s personality and temperment had been taking a nosedive, and this was really hurting Nana. In the end, his final act of singing “for” her nakedly showed what kind of person he became, and good for Nana for realizing that, and that she had nothing to gain from pursuing him anymore. She can stand on her own, and She Don’t Need No Man (except me lulz). But then… although she showed that she could tell SW to screw himself, that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t want to screw him! (That’s mildly disappointing, but one can reconcile the emotional severance with a lingering sexual attraction.)
Now, the ugly critical part!
* Seyi just broke down and hit rock bottom with the revelation… and all SC could do was talk about himself?! I guess he hasn’t progressed ALL the way.
* As mentioned above, the question of “what does SW see in Nana” remains unanswered, as is “what are SW’s dreams”. In fact, so much of SW’s overall story ended disappointingly. I would have liked to see a development of SW’s downward spiral (in opposition to SC’s upward ascent, if that was the writers’ intentions) and how it would affect his performance in other areas of life, especially school.
* The fact that SC ended up holding the sasaeng’s hand was just a stupid attempt at tension-breaking (especially after such a powerful scene as him attempting to reach for Seyi’s hand and rescuing her from the crowd), but I was angrier at SW ending up holding her hand and dragging her to the green room. Because we didn’t need this triangle crap anymore, but the writer/director STILL managed to throw something in at the last minute.
* That PD and his assistant were the worst excuses for moving the plot forward since ever. Unclear motivation coupled with uninteresting characters made for OH GOD WHY ARE WE WATCHING THESE TWO AGAIN?!?!
* EH, KD, and DN’s characters were thrown aside several episodes ago, so their role became significantly reduced. With KD and DN, I was not disappointed because they were able to reach a satisfactory resolution with each other. (Becoming simple comic relief seemed unnecessary, though, but they had to remain relevant somehow.) But EH’s story was so poorly handled that the series ended with her problems not getting addressed at all. So much potential wasted.
* Why did Seyi’s mom visit J. Han so much? And why did she give him the CD? These things “just happened”, and no reasons were given behind them. And now they will never be given, because she resolved never to see him again. So the parents’ story remains painfully wide open. Especially since we don’t know how Seyi’s relationship with them has changed. (Possible sequel hook, but then again good sequel hooks tease new plotlines, not drag on old ones.)
Still, overall, despite the disappointments, I (like the final song says) have absolutely no regrets watching this drama. I first saw it for my Darling Dahee, but I fell in love with some pretty compelling characters and arcs (especially Radio). Although I still view it as a whole lot of wasted potential plot-wise, the touching musical acts made it worth it. And of course, anything with Dahee cannot possibly be a disappointment.
Hell, I even started listening to Batoost more as a result of Junhyung. (I first heard of him with his collaboration with veteran Kpop diva Kim Wan Sun “Be Quiet”, and I didn’t think much of him other than him hilariously mispronouncing “run away”.) “Fiction” is constantly on loop, and I’m doing the dance nearly every night to lose weight!
Thank you, Koala, for improving my drama-watching experience.
Wow, you pointed out a lot of things in your critical part that I kind of glossed over. But I think it’s because I was enjoying soo much of the rest of the show and music that I actually didn’t mind that there were some annoying tidbits (eg the PD and the assistant! I didn’t like them cos they took up precious screen time away from my favorite ColorBar kiddies, even if I understand for the sake of the storyline they had to get screen time lol!)
But!! I will say put in my 2 cents, if you don’t mind about Seol Chan and SeYi’s conversation on the bench – cos I completely saw that in a different light. I actually appreciated the fact that Seol Chan talked about himself when Se Yi was inconsolable. Because by talking about his own hardship, he was able to divert her attention for a little while, give her some breathing space and allow her to not be consumed so much by her the shock and grief — and in doing so will allow Se Yo to actually absorb what he is about to say to her. By telling his own story, he was able to get her to listen and when he’s got her attention and not so much in her internal turmoil, she’ll actually hear what he’s telling her.
I honestly thought that was one of the best things the writer did in this episode. I thought it a rather sensitive & effective approach for consoling Se Yi at the time, given that she’s almost hysterical. It also showed just how much Seol Chan has grown up since the beginning of the show, and also how much he can really connect with her.
So anyway, that’s my 2 cents…
If you put it in that light, I guess that’s one way to help out Seyi. But I guess cultural differences made me unable to see this possibility.
But what I STILL don’t get is why his Eomoni gave him a different name after adopting him a second time, even though he’s the exact same damn kid. There’s just no logic in that, period, unless the first naming was somehow a mistake that was rectified in the renaming.
Brian, in the chinese culture too we change names sometimes to change the destiny of the child. So i assume that is why she changed his name. They didnt start well so its a change of fortune hopefully with the new name.
can someone please tell me the title of the song which all the cast members sing???the ending credits song!!please!!
isn’t it the same song that Eun Ha sang (that had Seyi Sunwoo and Seol Chan sang/arranged) at the end of Episode 10??
here’s the original link i found that showed me where to go for the original version… see the comments. enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwCuBu8xkMo
thank you!:)
hi,.. just confused about seol chan’s mother? is she the real mom??? i thought he was adopted,.. but here, she says, she’s not ready to be a mom,.. i was really confused,..
Wah! It can’t be over!!! thanks Koala for the recap :D..