The lovers reunited in episode 12 and left us expecting happy, squeeful moments for the finale. Would we return to that cupcake-like sweetness that won our hearts in the beginning of the show? Cancel that order. Instead, My Secret Romance stuck it’s tongue out at us in one giant MERONG!!!!
She’s STILL running
Yoo Mi awakens on the beach with the words of mean, chaebol daddy ringing in her head that she and Cha Jin Wook were never meant to be. So she does what she’s been doing the entire show. She runs away. I find it very hard to accept this as it proves there’s been no character growth, at all. Poor Jin Wook already has abandonment issues because of his mom, and Yoo Mi already left him on that beach once before. He should have known it wasn’t safe to fall asleep. At least he’s got his clothes on this time and there are no squawking ahjummas making fun of him.
A long overdue reunion
Mother and son meet again after decades of separation when Cha Jin Wook visits his runaway parent. We see where he gets his habit of silently waiting for the one he loves as his mother tells him she’s been doing the same thing for him. Sung Hoon does a great job of sniffling and wiping his eyes like a lost, little boy as he finally gets to eat his favorite abalone porridge again. Turns out his mom read about Lee Yoo Mi from the news articles and is aware of the scandal situation. Without a trace of irony in her voice, she encourages her son to go get her. I can’t help but wonder why she never applied this philosophy to her relationship with her own child. Why is passive waiting the proof of love?
OH. MY. WORD.
Yoo Mi’s mother gets what I assume is supposed to be her redemption arc. How does she redeem herself? On LIVE national TV she offers choice bits of wisdom like, “Who cares if it was a one night stand?” Is she trying to embarrass her daughter for life? In another bit of writing that we can file under the “Makes No Sense” category, Yoo Mi seems moved by this speech and decides to chuck caution to the wind. She rushes to find her beloved and they embrace in the company lobby with a crowd of onlookers watching. The best part of this scene for me was Clueless Cook leaping around like a happy idiot.
I can’t swallow this stuff anymore. I don’t want to get k-drama indigestion. Maybe I could just list the annoying things that followed.
- Worst K-mom ever brags at an expensive looking salon that her child is dating the son of Daebok’s owner. That’s right. Doesn’t even say his name. Just his social standing.
- Normally smiley Dong Goo weeps as he’s passed to the strange actor playing his father.
- Hyun Tae asks Stalker Chick to go to South America. She says yes. Enough said.
- The wedding at the end of the show is not even for our main couple. It’s her MOTHER’S!
- Cha Jin Wook learns that the breast pad he’s cherished for years actually belongs to his future mother-in-law, who is showing a shamelessly long slide show of her past erotic work while her toddler sits in the audience. (As I read the list, it becomes glaringly obvious how much of this episode centered around my least favorite character.)
- The writers mess with our heads one last time as they show Jin Wook slow-mo strutting it down the aisle to Yoo Mi and we’re left to wonder if they got married, too. Or was that just practice? There’s no officiant. Or guests. Or ring. So I’m guessing no.
My Secret Romance felt like a meal in reverse. It served up sugary sweet dessert first, with passionate kisses, toe-curling chemistry, and fluttery feelings. Oh, how I enjoyed those early confections. The couple met again and drew closer together as we tasted the savory meat of the story. And then came the angsty brussel sprouts. They were hard to swallow and some of us grumbled as we chewed them, but then we finally got to the finale. Surely it would be a yummy appetizer like Hot Kisses Hot Wings with a side of Cavorting-in-the-kitchen Sauce on the side. Or maybe some Wedding Planner Potato Skins as Butler Bestie hustles Jin Wook and Yoo Mi from one boutique to the next, when all they want to do is cuddle. But no. We got more brussel sprouts. For those that enjoyed the past few episodes, I’m happy for you. I know everyone’s tastes are different. But as for myself, I’m glad this frustrating meal is over.
I’m dyeing laughing at your brussel sprouts comparison! I’m glad I’m not the on;y one who found the ending unpalatable! If I had to watch one more flashback, to use your meal metaphor, I would have skipped out!
I guess there were a lot of us wanting to sneak out.
Nooo!! Why did they do this to us??? I mean what even was that ending?? *sobbing*
Your summary points of all the lame/random points of the ending are a deep solace that I’m not the only one who thought this was just baaaad.
And thank you for all your work on the recaps!!! They were super fun to read! I enjoyed them even when the show’s plot itself was screwing around with us. 😀
Thanks for the thanks. The beginning was so fun to recap. Something i looked forward to, but the last few. Whew. Glad it’s done.
Gosh, this drama had such promise, but as you observed turned ludricious. I mean really, were we supposed to believe anyone would have the willpower to run away from Sung Hoon a second time…? Especially after those scrumptious scenes of him and Dong Goo at the playground…Ok, I confess, I kept watching the drama for the eye candy he provided not the half-baked storyline. : ) It’s sad that this drama did not work, they had all the pieces, but the storyline was lacking.
The playground scene might just be the best part of the drama ; )
That last episode – sheesh. They could have just combined the last two into one & made the wedding our OTP instead of stupid mom’s…..
You guys lasted way longer then me, I bailed around ep. 7 and I’m glad I did!
That’s when I bailed too! lmaoo and before then I was pretty much forcing myself to watch bc I don’t like quitting dramas ._. I rarely quit dramas but this one was just too bad for me to continue watching. Especially when there are other better dramas that I could spend my time watching. Anyway congrats to us on skipping out of this mess! 😅 lol
I agree with a lot that’s said here though I was less mad at the drama than you. Perhaps because I was never that invested to begin with, I just stayed around for Sung Hoon. Having not expected much from this show, so I watched the angst in final episodes with amusement, not taking it seriously and occasionally even zoning out. It’s a pretty forgettable show, but I never found myself too annoyed with it. Had it been longer, I might have grown more frustrated with the endless flashbacks, but at 13 episodes, the drama was still fairly likable for me (for the pure fluff it was). Couple got together, second leads stepped aside, nobody went full psycho – I consider it a win.
Though yes, it was pretty hilarious how Dong Goo suddenly started crying when his ‘dad’ picked him up and I rolled my eyes out of my skull when Hyun Tae asked Hye Ri to go to South Africa with him.
I’ve related to so many of your points in these recaps – especially when you said the whole conflict didn’t make any sense. It didn’t! I was screaming at my screen near the end, and you made me feel sane. Your comment about being able to predict the flashbacks made me laugh so hard. There were so many, it was excessive and annoying.