dangermousie | The Devil picspam for eps 13-15: the Joo Ji Hoon edition

It's a little ridiculous, but even going through bits of eps 13-15 for capping purposes was making me teary. This drama affects me in both a cerebral way and a ridiculously emotional one.

With the exception of Legend, this really is the best drama I've seen. And yes, I am still planning to cap every ep.

This is picspam from eps 13-15, and largely JJH-centric. Why? Because I felt like it. This isn't so much a thorough picspam of those episodes but a picspam and thoughts on some of my favorite scenes.

I am thinking of something unconnected to these caps but about JJH's character. You get the sense that he thought getting revenge would make him feel better. Once he gets one of ten (or whatever) people, he will feel 10% better, 2 people 20% better etc etc. But one of the things that is making him so lost is that he is getting his revenge but it's not making it better: his family is still dead, he is still in pain. But he is locked in and can't let himself believe it's futile because then his life has no meaning. He can, of course, find new meaning in the care of his adopted brother, in his legal career (he clearly is portrayed as brilliant), in Hae In's love, but that would require a complete reimagining of self and I don't think he is capable of it: thought of revenge was the way he coped, he made himself continue to live, and not only that, I don't think he believes he is deserving of happiness and forgetting of the past, and letting go of revenge, embracing the future instead of the past and love (in all its forms) instead of vengeance, would be happiness. But not deserved happiness, in his eyes. I think the tragedy of Mawang, more than anything, is that both Seung Ha and Oh Soo have so much to live for and to give to others, but their lives are wrecked by a mistake-accident of years ago which traps them both in the past, forever.

At the hospital bedside of the old man who saw him and his friend, the real Seung Ha, as boys on the run. We find out later he paid the hospital bills. Did I mention that one of things I love the drama for is that Seung Ha's latent streak goodness isn't hidden to be some giant surprise 'See, he isn't a psychopath but a really damaged young man out for revenge' but is woven into the story throughout. His breakdown at the end is entirely believable, because of it.

Warning. A lot of caps in this batch are ship-oriented. I started shipping 'Killer Lawyers and Psychic Librarians' because it was so boggling as a concept and unusual and I was amused by the thought but...Hae In and Seung Ha ended up one of my favorite drama ships for real. Odd for an OTP that doesn't even have a kiss...but there it is. The crazy chemistry and the staring and the restraint, doesn't hurt.

He is about to have dinner with her family and she teases that he told her he won't ever eat with her again and he stammers out it was her Mom who invited her (he loses all of his poise with her and becomes just a young man, young man who can be flustered or confused). And he adds 'I didn't say I didn't like eating with you, I said I won't.' Yeah, that really is the problem, isn't it? He likes it too much.

The one black-and-white sober spot in the riot of life in color. Whoever is the art designer for this drama should get an award.

Sorry, I know it's a JJH picspam but I can't resist a little Uhm Tae-Woong.

This is in the running for my favorite scene in the drama. It sort of made me cry. He is at Hae In's home for dinner and Hae-In's mother prepares the dish his mother used to prepare for him and his brother (I think it's true smells and tastes are the most visceral memories). And he tries to eat it and literally chokes.

I love the way she looks at him. Not because of the googly eyes, but because she is full of life:

Look, it even makes him smile!

He remembers:

Young Seung Ha was rather adorable (and smiles a lot). And it just occured to me why he broke so thoroughly: he is the baby of the family, isn't he? With a hard-working Mom and an idolized and strong older brother? He was always loved and cared for and protected and then he lost all that and he had no coping mechanisms and had to build them all.

Their casting is awesome here. I care even for characters we see very little of, in the drama: Seung Ha's brother and mom.

They notice he isn't eating:

So he does:

And this happens:

She is worried and comes out to look and finds this:

He moves away from her touch:

He asks her to make his excuses to her mother:

She gets his jacket:

They are going to kill me with hands-almost-touching-but-not-really:

GUUUUUUH.

This is just pretty. And yes, the lights are still off in his apartment.

Next morning she brings the left-over food to his office.

Again with the hands!

She asks him if he ever lived in the area she lived as a kid and he denies it. Hone your lying skills, SH!

I loved this scene with the real Seung Ha's sister. Who, it turns out, always suspected he wasn't her real brother, but wanted to believe he was. And she helps him. There are so many people who care for him, but he is so fixated on revenge and letting go of life, he refuses to see it.

I love all the confined spaces:

They are taking Sora to his adopted brother who will take care of her:

It's kinda shocking to see him look effortlessly happy:

Checking out in the rear-view mirror!

Looking away, so cute!

At his adopted brother's farm. The brother is all 'we are so glad he finally brought a girlfriend along.' Hae In and Seung Ha: *choke*

Brother then continues that Seung Ha never brings anyone along and he is worried SH is lonely but now he feels at ease.

Little kid of Brother and Sora come and drag Seung Ha off. He seems to be a fave of them.

He looks back at Hae In (Brother is all 'yeah, not a couple, pull the other one, it has bells on'):

She is planting the daffodil Oh Soo gave her:

She mentions it will be all grown next spring. The way he responds clearly indicates he doesn't intend to be alive by then (I find it so interesting that part of his plan is to die...because he can't see life after revenge and because justice would mean he has to die too, but I think incresingly it is also because he feels guilty and because he can't bear the people in his life to know what he has done).

She also tells him he and Oh Soo are very similar: kind people who have trouble expressing their emotions. She also adds they will become good friends. The irony is, of course, that under other circumstances, in another universe, she is exactly right: they could have become friends. But not here. Of course, I also find it fascinating that he can't resist asking her how they are similar.

He keeps staring after her:

They walk off and a scene I adore follows:

Rain!

TOUCH HER ALREADY!!!!!!

GUUUUH. When he smiles at her this way. He almost never smiles anyway, and certainly not like this.

I love the intercut between the present and their past selves.

They are driving off. *melt*

He drops her off at her house:

Oh God! I swear, I literally screamed at this point the first time I saw the drama. He can't help himself and touches her wrist. It's funny how this drama is all about small gestures and outside the frame of reference it's all 'so he touched her hand, so what' but within the story and constraints of the characters it's so huge. I screamed.

And he lets go so quickly and it's clear it was just so out of his control and he couldn't help it any longer. It's not just his poise that she breaks through, it's his self control, too...