Hometown Cha Cha Cha Heads into This Sunday’s Final Episode 16 with K-viewer Complaint About the Big Back Story Behind the Male Lead’s Angsty Guilt

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• I loved this show till about episode 10. But after they get together, its gone steadily downhill.. Shin mina's aegyo is cringe and whiny, the chemistry vanished completely and the big dark secret was an absolute damp squib. But I'm super happy that ksh is solid lead material so looking forward to whatever comes up next.

  • I agree, since they got together hyejin gave me goosebumps.. dushik was ok tho..

  • Agree!!! I have no problem with Dushik but Hyejin, duh, she acted like she was a teenager. Super clingy and very uncomfortable to watch.

    Ep 14 gave me hope, but the last part totally absurd. He got beaten for not knowing about someone is WEIRD! lol that person didnt even mention his dad's name nor asking where dushik worked but got all mad bcuz of it. Like, seriously?? Havent watched ep 15 and 16, but will do later.

    • I left due to Shin Mina"s clothes/ fashion. How can I watch in peace with her horrible clothing? It keeps distracting and disturbing me! Gosh, whoever is the wardrobe manager of this drama should be replaced.

    • So. bottom line--should I watch or pass?

    • I HATE when grown women act like backward teenagers, it's why I have a hard time watching most JDramas! And, I can't remember what series it was, but it, TOO, had a stupid explanation of the whole angst-driven secret--ruined the show for me. That's just bad imagination on the writers' parts. So, I'm thinking this show might just be an el passo for me! Sad, because it has been getting good reviews, but judging by the comments on here. not good enought to justify the problems with it.

  • Yes, totally agree with you. Actually by the 7 episode, I keep dozing off. Meaning the show is really boring and I don't find their attraction to each other is heart fluttering

  • I cringed when they kissed each others dimples. Like, too much cutesy stuff from characters in their 30s. The show lost its momentum for me. It's just an easy, relaxing watch.

    • Yes HP2 fizzled as well, ratings wise. I'm not saying the ratings for homecha aren't good just that based on the trajectory of the first 5-6 episodes, seemed like it would go higher than 12%. I think the plot didn't advance enough and that became clear at the halfway mark.

  • I think audience feels the same because the ratings just kinda... stalled. For a while I thought it would climb to Mr Queen/Vincenzo or even Cloy territory since it started off with better ratings but it just fizzled out.

    • How come Homecha rating is stalled and fizzled out? They started with 6% and ended in 12%. Same with Vincenzo and Mr Queen. Vincenzo started with 7% and ended in 14%. Mr Queen 8% and ended in 17%.

      Cloy is different. From 6% to 21%. We cannot argue that Cloy is phenomenal.

    • I think it's because it doesn't have any too striking conflict or plot and no cliffhangers (except for the last 4 episode) like Vicenzo or other dramas, so the Korean viewers didn't feel the need to watch it real time. They could watch it later in streaming service, such as Tving and Netflix, which is why it's always on the top spot (no. 1 or 2 on Netflix, no. 1 on Tving). But the impact is real, to the fact that tourism in Pohang increases due to people visiting the filming site.

    • If we are talking about ratings stall, then HP2 takes the cake. Blasted out of the gate at 10%, then ended at 14%, lower than HP1.

  • 100% agree. The beginning + middle were excellent but then when they got together and the drama literally FELL apart. I agree chemistry vanished, things became very cartoony - especially the female lead's character, and now this big 'secret' is about the guilt of something HE had zero control over (his friend dying in a car accident and the uncle's suicide - not his fault). I get it that he's sensitive but would have preferred something more realistic or at least the direct result of his actions.

    • He also felt guilty that he didn't answer the phone when he called = same guilt for not being home with grandpa when he had heart attack

• I don't think it was weird that Doo-Shik felt so guilty about this. He's a senstive person who cares about every people around him.

  For the family's reactions, yeah there were completely unfair but it's often the case in KDrama. People thinking only about their family and think it justifies everything they said or done is a very used trope in KDrama. Like you can marry an orphelin, a single dad/mother, a son/daughter of a criminal, etc.

  I don't think they painted badly the fund managers. The both were ready to help the guy.

• It kind of weird that many Kdrama got awkward when the couple are together. They becomes less convincing. I don't know why. They are super good at push and pull stage, make love triangle but weirdly bad at making a loveable couple story

  • The only k-drama I have watched by far where the couple took chemistry to new heights when they officially become a couple is "Live Up To Your Name". That drama has the best OTP ever, very rare to have K-drams showcasing OTP in healthy, full grown up relationship. It was a combo of good writing and phenomenal chemistry between the leads.

    I agree with you, most drama sensation falters once the OTP got together and that's really wasteful.

  • I think this is the problem. The build up is the best part and then it falls flat after that. I need angst!

• Given the uncle who died is finance illeterate it is possible for them to put the blame on dushik. If the clients are high net worth individuals who are suave in finance, it is less likely to happen for them to blame the investment manager.

  • An unlikely thing to happen is for dushik to recommend a high risk investment to invest on the uncle’s money. As an investment manager he should be able to measure the type of investment that is suitable for his clients. I think this is a plot hole in this drama

    • He didn't recommend it though. The guy came to him and said he wanted to invest and DS tried to tell him it was risky. He gave him a number to call and the guy ended up investing in an even riskier plan.

      I didn't mind the family blaming DS because the dad did it all behind their back. From their perspective, it looked bad.

• Spoiler:
  It was not the death of his friend's dad.
  The one who died is his sunbae and college roommate who has been liked his elder brother during his stay in Seoul. The sunbae even asked DS to get that job in his asset management company.

  The cameraman's dad attempted suicide, because he lost money in the funds. It is explained that it is not Doo Shik's fault. DS did not recommend the high risk funds to him and DS had asked him not to be reckless. The dad bought from the employee in charge of the sales, not from DS directly. Obviously, this part can be explained further whether the risk profile assessment were done properly to ensure that the dad's risk profile is suitable for the funds, but this is not a drama on financial services, so it guess, it is just a brief mention of it.

  As Sayaris above said, it is inline with DS character to feel guilty, because he cares for people around him. He originally did not want to go into the asset management industry because he felt it is too money oriented.

  With his hyung's death (though it was not shown in ep 15), he probably felt that the comments he heard during his grandad's wake, that ppl around him will die, hold true. Hence, in his mind, he could not reason why he'll be the only one living.

  The agyeo during the dating period is too much, but i blame in on the writer and director, not the actors.

  Anyway, this drama is an easy watch. No perfect characters (except Ijun), but no bad characters either. Everyone has their own flaws, but they also ready to admit their mistakes and be a better person. A feel good drama to watch in a difficult period with the never ending pandemic.

  • I clicked the imaginary LIKE button multiple times for your comment. :)

    It takes a very mature viewer to understand, and empathize with DS character. This lovely drama had so many meaningful life lessons sprinkled throughout the 16 episodes. I’m sad to see it end but am sure I’ll rewatch again and again for the beautiful scenery, funny bantering between the leads, the awesome supporting cast, etc.

  • You are correct and insightful in your review of what happened and again in your assessment of this series. Thank you… I was getting frustrated with all the errors in several other posts!

• I'm a longtime lurker on this blog, but I've decided to comment just for this post (maybe).

  I'd like to think that at this point, koala intentionally chooses to write Knetizens' complaints about this drama. This reminds me about her previous Homcha article about the leading lady's need to be saved and relying on the male lead.

  Her two recent articles on Homcha share similar writing styles - presenting viewers' complaints while being "understanding" of those and ending both articles on a positive note.

  • Absolutely agreed with you.

  • Yes, I agree with you. I guess she didn't watch Homecha. Since she was perceptive, if she watched it, she must know the answer why Dushik is devastated for Doha's father and the death of his hyung.

  • It would be nice to hear the positive comments sometimes.

    • I mean Dali and Gamjatang and Red Sky get positive posts every week but HomeCha only gets posts when viewers have complaints.

    • I would love for it also, especially since there are so many positives articles in Korea about Homcha. But well it's her preference and we can't force her on that. It doesn't matter to me tho, cause I still love Homcha (and I know I'm not the only one) and nothing will ruin that feelings for me :)

  • Agreed! She hasn't been watching the show and ends up writing negative articles, with inaccurate plot. I'm gonna miss the hell out of this show! Sting female lead, sensitive male lead, lovable secondary characters that actually have depth. It was an emotion roller-coaster in the best kind of way!

• They lose the emotional impact because all big reveal from episode 11 onwards doesn't feel natural.... I think the movie handle the conflict more realistic. it's just feel like the writers just want to make audience happy hehehe... abit underwhelming about the story unfold. but happy for Kim Seun Ho. he is seriously good and shine when the character need character depth. even outshining Shin Min Ah.

• Did these people really watch the drama? The client dad didn't die. He tried to commit suicide. Also we got Dusik's side of the story and it was made clear to the audience that it was the client's own fault for being risky with his own money when he was expressly warned not to by Dusik.

  I bet Doha's family made their own speculation on what happened since the dad was in a coma and I bet he never explained what the real story is even after waking up and Dusik definitely took blame on himself (cause that's the type of guy he was). Also I don't think he was as much upset by the money loss but more the fact that he didn't pick up the dad's phone call which is the "if I only picked up the call he wouldn't have tried to commit suicide.".

  • Exactly! He felt guilty for ignoring repeated calls from the SECURITY MAN, WHO DECIDED TO COMMIT SUICIDE, BUT DID NOT DIE. (Yes, Ms. Blogger, you should make the necessary correction) And for allowing his hyung to drive him to the hospital, his hyung dying in the car accident. It was an overwhelming amount of guilt he couldn’t let go. Sensitive viewers can empathize with this.

• Agree with everyone who said that the show fizzled out midway. I gave up during episode 11 after getting back onboard because it got so cheesily sweet that I felt like I was getting cavities.

  This drama is basically the Kim Sun Ho show. The plot is weak and it began to show midway when the show started dragging. HCCC is a good example of leads star power, charisma, acting ability, and chemistry holding up the show's ratings.

  As to people comparing about Koala having it out for this show, I saw this ep15 complaint echoed everywhere. Even on a discussion on the Blind app (of all places!).

• I didn't mind the reveal. I sort of wish DS had done something wrong, but they set up why DS would feel so guilty. Anyway, I really enjoyed this drama and wish there were more like it. I also thought it was well written, for the most part, and that was a big reason for the drama's success, along with the light, warm tone and wonderful actors.