Love

*Reviewed by sukting

Foreword
Be prepared for a shock when you watch this serial!

Introduction on characters/story

Zheng Ren Hua – Jang Dong Gun

He works as a reporter and is a master of languages. He stays in his senior’s home. Hie first meeting with Ying Shu is disastrous. He leaves his undergarments out of the bathroom and Ying Shu has to get them for him. Later, he falls deeply in love with her, despite knowing that she is 8 years OLDER than him, has a 6 year old daughter and is his senior’s fiancee! He still thinks of wooing her and celebrating her birthday with her. He succeeds in the end but he has to pay a high price. His senior leaves the country while Ying Shu later dies of cancer.

Ren Hua works in a car company as a car designer after that but Jin Zhe is jealous of his talents. While doing a car test, Jin Zhe does something to the car and lands Ren Hua in hospital. However, he recovers quickly. At first, he is at loggerheads with the boss’s daughter, Zhi Xian. This woman wastes his time to do unnecessary checks but both become great friends after she knows of his past.

He is a good friend of the Jin siblings as he often sends his cars to them for checking at their garage. He later gets more than he can handle when Zhi Xian and Xi Shu fall for him. It takes 6 long years for him to forget Ying Shu. After serious consideration, he marries Xi Shu and she is pregnant with his child. He is contended to be a farmer.

Jang is in top form here and many will be moved by the sad scenes.

Jin Shen Yu – Ju Ben Cheng

He is Ren Hua’s roommate and owns a coffee house. He falls for Zhi Xiu and helps her to forget the past of becoming a mistress. Both get married in the end and have a pair of twins.

Jin Xiang Xuan

He tries to forget his past with the underworld after being released from prison. But they just don’t let him off and he dies in the end.

Cui Jin Zhe

This person is the cause of the troubles. All along, he has been jealous of Ren Hua’s talents and tries to frame him. He nearly gets into jail because of selling the company projects to another company. Later, he tries to impress Zhi Xian, with little results because she isn’t interested in him. He never expects his mistress to cause his downfall due to jealousy too. He has wanted to elope with Zhi Xian but Shi Luo informs the cops to catch him right at Liu’s residence.

Jin Xi Shu – Song Yun Ah

She is very quiet and looks like a housewife with no make-up. She likes Ren Hua but doesn’t tell him about it. Her brother has to tell Ren Hua on her behalf. She looks so haggard and many wonder why Ren Hua chooses her. Maybe it’s simplicity that works on him – she looks so fragile when her brother dies so Ren Hua feels the urge to look after her.

Liu Zhi Xian – Choi Ji Woo

She is very willful and looks down on others just because she studied abroad. She doesn’t know that there is another expert on cars – Ren Hua who is so good in car manufacturing. She learns from him and is very impressed. She tries to open his heart but is dismayed that she can never be successful. Poor woman – I still think that she deserves better treatment.

Quite a refreshing change from her normal roles of being demure and suffering in silence. Choi is loud and hilarious in here. All should not miss her in here!

Han Ying Shu – Jin Mei Shu

She looks so old as Ren Hua’s dream lover. This shows that love is very blind. I mean, it is alright if she is like Shiu Mei Kei/Choi Wing Lam pair in Healing hands 2. But she looks old enough to be Ren Hua’s mother. When they walk together, you will find it so unbelievable that they are a pair of lovers. This is the worst mismatch that I have seen so far among all serials!

Piao Shi Luo

She is Jin Zhe’s mistress and has been keeping all his documents for him, being his helpful spy. She is devastated that he has made use of her all along and betrays him in the end for ditching her.

Li Zhi Xiu

To me, she is a shameless woman to seduce a married man – bringing food to his office and also asking him out. Luckily she loves the right person in the end who can give her true happiness.

Favourite character

Ren Hua for his devotion in love

Most hated character

Jin Zhe for being so ruthless to women

Interesting scenes

Ren Hua is sick at home and taking a nap. Ying Shu comes to visit him and looks into his youthful face, feeling inferior as she knows that she is ageing. She then discovers his note on how to bridge the 8 year gap between them. At this time, she touches his face and he wakes up. Both embrace together. Most unbearable scene that I’ve watched so far.

Ren Hua sees Ying Shu’s daughter on the road 6 years later. He stops the car, hugs her and cries non-stop because she reminds him of the past.

Ren Hua buys a necklace for Xi Shu upon seeing how much she likes it.

Zhi Xian gets drunk first while trying to make Ren Hua drunk. You will laugh at her stupidity as she falls from her chair and declares that she isn’t drunk. Ren Hua has to give up his bed to let her sleep overnight. She is so drunk that she even tucks out her blouse and looks so untidy.

The next day, she thinks that Ren Hua has done something to her and is relieved to know that nothing has happened between them. All really smile upon seeing her in the same dress as the day before. One even laughs in sarcasm. Why? She has wanted them to reach the company early but she herself is late for work for half an hour! Later, she warns Ren Hua to keep the matter in secret but he gets so fed up with her.

Ren Hua plays the piano and is very upset, thinking of Ying Shu. What a sharp contrast – he wears a white sweater and the piano is white too! He looks so gloomy and attractive in here. Many will melt upon seeing this scene. He is so talented at work and is also a great musician. This role is similar to his role as Xiang Zhe as in ‘All About Eve’ although he is more emotional here.

Zhi Xian kisses Ren Hua when he comes out unscathed from a car which he tested a while ago. Jin Zhe has tried to harm him again but he is lucky this time. Ren Hua is taken aback and Zhi Xian quickly claims that she only did it out of impulse.

Zhi Xian tries dressing more casually to fit Ren Hua.

Ren Hua searches for Xi Shu at the countryside and reveals his feelings to her.

Ren Hua proposes to Xi Shu after finding her working at a flower plantation.

Zhi Xian visits Ren Hua secretly after finishing her masters overseas. He is now a happy farmer with a beard and is working on the farm. She sheds tears before asking her match-making partner to drive away.

Interesting facts

This is the first time that Jang, Song and Choi work together. This is probably also the last as they are so busy and Jang concentrates on movie making.

Many Jang fans are baffled and angered by the arrangement of him to like a woman older than him by 8 years! Moreover the actress is really too old in appearance. When the serial was shown in Korea, many called up the television station for complaints. Some boycotted the serial.

The producer had no choice but to let Ying Shu die after 8 episodes. They had initially wanted them to get happily married together ever after to break the tradition. The Korean community is still conservative after all. I also found it a stupid arrangement as she really looks more like his mother. I was equally disgusted when watching it on television. Can’t they find a better choice? Curious to find out how she looks? Please watch to find out.

Many complained about Choi’s wooden and stiff acting. But I find them a little picky on this newcomer at that time. She has tried hard to give her best. I will say that Song is more boring because her expressions are the same all the time – boring and lifeless.

Many lamented why Zhi Xian isn’t chosen as she is prettier and she even takes the first step to declare her love for Ren Hua. So do I – it is so pathetic to see her crying for being rejected so many times.

Conclusion

So far, I have been fortunate to watch all Korean dramas on television and they were mostly in dual sound. You may feel more with the characters, listening to their touching voices in Korean. This serial is worth watching if you omit the first 8 episodes. I find it absurd for Ren Hua to be so daring to snatch another person’s love. The latter episodes are more touching and logical with younger artistes as the leads. We still prefer to see younger faces anyway.
source:www.spcnet.tv