Damo!!!!

[dangermousie]

EEEEEE!

I just finished ep 2 of Damo. Will meta later but for now:

OMG!! OMG!!! OMG!!!!

Not only am I now all about and swooning mad for Hwangbo Yoon, but I am now the world's second biggest (after meganbmoore), Hwangbo Yoon/Chae-Ok shipper.

OMG! She so totally LOVES him. And he LOVES her. You can so TELL. And they are both total misfits: he is a bastard (he could call his father 'Father' only on the man's deathbed!) and she is a formerly noble girl who lost her status and became a servant after her family was destroyed for treason. And they have a burning sense for righting social injustice and are both reserved and passionate at the same time. EEE!

And OMG! There is carrying, and angsty stares, and swordfighting in the rain and

OMG OMG OMG I HAVE A HUGE NEW SHIP!!!

And a new crush. You were right, meganbmoore, Hwangbo Yoon is so awesome, I have even forgotten the beard!

Meta coming...

Comments

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

see, your reaction to both eps is almost identical to mine. I knew you'd convert. I think the scene that made me go insane was early in the episode when it looks like the one attacking Chae-Ohk is Jang Sung-Baek, and he just literally goes blind to everything but killing the man he thinks is hurting her, and he completely blows their cover. And, really, if anyone else had tried to stop him, they'd be dead. The only reason she lived through it was because the little part that wasn't washed in red in "protect my woman" mode was the part that's always attuned to her. And then he finally hears what she's trying to tell him and it's instant defusion. it doesn't even bother me(wrong as this sounds) that he hit her, because until she got through, all he was capable of was violence until he killed the person he thought was hurting her, and the slap was the most he could tone it down, at that was because he was just barely aware that it was even her. That's also why his men didn't try to stop him...they like being alive.

And isn't the girl who plays little Chae-Ohk the cutest thing EVER? I'm also very fond of the kid who plays young Hwangbo Yoon...he also played the younger version of the main character in Emperor of the Sea.

One thing that always kills me in regards to their past is that he was his father's favorite, the one he wanted the most for, and the one he could give the least to.It's very similar to what would happen were Hwangbo Yoon and Chae-Ohk give in to their feelings(and probably why he's never pushed it)

I also love thatthey give us an explanation, and a good one, for how she got to be so good. And weren't they just the cutest kids in love on the mountain?

I think this covered all the meta I was going to have for the eps!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

The scene that made me go insane was a bit earlier, when he found out she went to meet the thieves and FREAKED. Majorly freaked, beyond reason. And was 'is she a soldier?' to his flunkie because to him she is the woman he loves and needs to protect, even though objectively she is a better fighter than most of his men! And you are right about his fight with SB. And I also loved his jealous reaction to her looking after SB 'What are you staring at?'

I really loved their first meeting (yes, the little girl is eeee!) where he puts her on his back because she is so tiny. They are both misfit outsiders: she wasn't born to a servant class, he is half and half, neither one thing nor another. I think that is part of why he has so much sympathy for her at the start.

Another thing I loved is that he is very controlled now, but you see that it's not because he is cold but he is very passionate and it's a really strong effort of will for him to always keep such a tight rein on himself. And the same is for her: she is a servant, not her own person.

weren't they just the cutest kids in love

It was adorable. I loved them playing on the mountain: her doing the bows with her, him giving her the handkerchief etc.

OMG, you know what I loved? Their intense swordfight in the rain with jis asking her 'who am I to you?' and that's too close to forbidden territory for both of them. And he is freaking out he's almost lost her, that there is nothing he can do to curb her recklessness, and he can't deal with the helplessness. I think he is realizing his feelings, because he almost lost her. When he tells her 'a life cannot be replaced' I don't think he is talking in abstractions.

One thing that always kills me in regards to their past is that he was his father's favorite, the one he wanted the most for, and the one he could give the least to

Exactly. The whole scene where he can first call his father 'Father' and not 'My Lord' is when he is 24 and he is crying is just...guuuuh. No wonder he seems to be interested in social justice just as much as Sung-Baek (only he chose not to rebel against the system like Sung-Baek but try to make things fair for everyone from within): look at his situation. I keep thinking about that scene with snooty kids and him fighting them (in childhood) and how he refused to back down even when faced with severe punishment. it's really strikingly similar to Chae-Ok's actions at the polo grounds. They really are very similar.

And then of course we get ep 3 (and how awesome is Chae-Ok, fighting that rapist by herself) and I think what terrifies him the most is that she seems to have no repentance, no fear, no knowledge of her own limits (he asks her despairingly, why she always must fight with her back to the wall. I think it's because she doesn't value her life, in part because of her untenable situation with him).

I love the scene where he channels his fear for her into total rage and they have a confrontation and he confines her to quarters and she resigns. So much emotion. OMG, they are so impossibly in love.

I love the scene where he comes to see her (he breaks first, eee!) and looks at her sandals outdoors and remembers the little kid she was. And then there is the awesome scene where he opens up about his background as an oblique explanation, not about the physical realities of it (which she knew) but the emotional tool, about feeling like a pig in human clothes, neither one thing nor another. I don't think he is ever as vulnerable with anyone, except her. And she says she'll resign to not be a burden because for her it's all about him and all the hurt and miscommunication and his saying 'fine' because for him it feels as if she is abandoning him and GUUUH.

And I loved his saying he'll protect her (it's totally my weakness) but my favorite line was hers: 'No one confined me as much as you have, My Lord, and no one has freed me as much as you have, My Lord.' *dies* Because it's so true. Not just on the materialistic level: he taught her to swordfight, gave her a real place in the world, a job, but also wants to protect her and not let her do dangerous things, but also emotionally: she is treated with dignity and respect but she is so emotionally bound to him.

Re: I think this covered all the meta I was going to have for the eps!

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

They're both extremely repressed, but also extremely passionate. They're one of those pairings where you just want the entire cast to yell at them to shut up and go have sex and make little unbeatable warriors(ever since I saw the SDK fan art, I've been substituting other pairings for them, because most of my big ships need something like that so they'll just get to it.)

The kids...I have incredible love for Baek Sung Hyun(young Hwangbo) who is growing up quite nicely: http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Baek_Sung_Hyun They get a LOT of mileage out of the mountains later, but I don't mind.

I love the swordfight in the rain...on the surface, it can come across that he's being mean to her, but it's the only way he can force her to realize that she's not immortal and that there ARE things she can't beat.

The thing that kills me as far as Hwangbo Yoon/Chae-Ohk/Jang Sung-Baek is that, ultimately, the thing that separates the two men is the choices they made in reaching their goals, and what SHOULD have made one forbidden territory and the other acceptable does the opposite, because being with Hwangbo Yoon in any context other than the one they're in now would destroy all his dreams, while Jang Sung-Baek represents the freedom she can't even allow herself to want.

The social statuses part plays a huge part in the series. The thing of it is that, as horrible as her situation is, it's infinitely better than what anyone else in her position has, which actually makes it worse in some ways. Because everyone there genuinely likes and respects her, even Nan Hui, the girl who loves Hwangbo Yoon, but they're also always aware of the social differences and the line they can't cross. The closest thing to one of them crossing that line is her partner, who was so obviously chosen to be her partner because he would be a father figure and never dream of trying to take advantage of a girl who had no legal way to refuse him. One of the more heartbreaking scenes in that context is when the silly guy(poor guy...I love him but never remember his name) is making such a fool of himself over her that his father has to put a stop to it, and he asks her to convince him to stop. It kills me because he knows that, based on merit alone, he could NEVER ask for a better daughter in law and that if she weren't a servant, she'd be able to guide and help him to be a great man. But she IS a servant and he feels like the most horrible wretch ever but he doesn't have a choice because his son is in danger of ruining himself over a girl who wouldn't be acceptable(and he knows that it's not her fault and that she's always discouraged him) even if she was interested.

And that's just it, for her social status, she has more respect and freedom than anyone else could ever dream of, but it's because she's viewed as an extension of Hwangbo Yoon, as opposed to an individual, even though they do like her for herself. And the extra respect she has because of him only makes her more aware of the fact that, on her own, she has nothing.

Hmm...I think I have icons, or at least bases, of the rain scene. *needs to DL another trial run of something so she can get back to making icons*

Re: I think this covered all the meta I was going to have for the eps!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I keep wondering about the social status thing. It's clearly not completely rigid: Chae-Ok herself had the 'noble' status until she was 7. And Hwangbo Yoon seems to have been elevated to full noble. It's clearly not like a European system where it's purely blood (in that case Chae-Ok would have stayed noble even after her father's debacle). So how does it work? Can she ever be reinstated? It seems incredibly incredibly rigid to the point of absurdity and makes me wonder how the nobles aren't all inbred.

They're both extremely repressed, but also extremely passionate.

Exactly. That actually seems to be a common theme with Korean drama heroes, but fairly rare with her heroines.

it can come across that he's being mean to her, but it's the only way he can force her to realize that she's not immortal and that there ARE things she can't beat.

Exactly. And I think he is also working out his anger and fear as well. And also, in a way, this is like The Duelist: the closest physically and emotionally they can be to each other, the one physical outlet allowed them is during the fighting. That is when they can engage the most, and outside the ranks.

the silly guy(poor guy...I love him but never remember his name

I find him kinda annoying and unappealing but then I was never much for comic relief guys :)

it's because she's viewed as an extension of Hwangbo Yoon, as opposed to an individual, even though they do like her for herself.

Definitely. And so her very sense of self is tangled with his. In a way, also, because she is treated almost like one of them, it makes her more acutely aware of the difference as opposed to if she only ever associated with servants in their own almost hermetical society. (I think Hwangbo Yoon was like she is now, when younger).

it's just that she can't allow herself to know it because the conviction that libing at his side as a servant and sister is enough for her is the ONLY thing that makes her life bearable

Hmmm. I think she knows how she feels, almost on the surface level. She just refuses to deal with it...

Re: I think this covered all the meta I was going to have for the eps!

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Hmm...in Emperor of the Sea, the main character was born as a slave, but was later made to be a free man and became a powerful merchant, and a similar thing happened with the other male lead, who was a freeman, then made a slave because he was a pirate, then was made a free man again for services rendered. In Chae-Ohk's case, though I think the fact that her father was a traitor contributes to that(in the case of Yum Moon in EotS, he served a man who became one of the top leaders of the new government, so it was a special case, and very different from a relatively lowe ranking(but highly respected) military man.

Duelist and Damo are actually loosely based on the same novel(I think all that either keeps is that she's a damo who gets drawn to a man involved in a counterfeiting plot, though they never address her social status in the movie) so that's why it sets off similarity alerts.

Silly guy didn't grow on me until after the scene I talked about, because he starts applying himself to try to be a man she can admire, instead of stupidly chasing her.

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

And a new crush. You were right, meganbmoore, Hwangbo Yoon is so awesome, I have even forgotten the beard!

He just fabulous, and a real man can carry even a Korean beard. :D Oh, I am so looking forward to the time you reach the latest episodes. I want to re-watch some with you and compare my thoughts to what you will think about it all.
Even though I thought that she didn't love Hwangbo Yoon the same way he did love her, I was shipping them like mad too.Because I absolutly don't understand how would anyone NOT fall in love with Hwangbo Yoon.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

He just fabulous, and a real man can carry even a Korean beard.

LOL. He has to be a very amazing man though! :) Interestingly, this is the one drama Mr. Mousie finds ok to watch in the background: all the politics and fights :)

Even though I thought that she didn't love Hwangbo Yoon the same way he did love her, I was shipping them like mad too.Because I absolutly don't understand how would anyone NOT fall in love with Hwangbo Yoon.

Exactly. He is so amazing. I thought she did love him in a romantic way: the chemistry, the glances, but most of all the way she thought in a despairing fashion that she wants him to be married so her heart could be at peace and she could leave the bureau. But I could totally see how you would think the other way, too!

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I've thought from the first episode that she loves him in the romantic way, it's just that she can't allow herself to know it because the conviction that libing at his side as a servant and sister is enough for her is the ONLY thing that makes her life bearable, and the seconds she admits to herself that she wants more, it'll become unbearable. It's not that she won't abmit it, it's just that she can't even allow herself to realize it.