The Story of Park's Marriage Contract 열녀박씨 계약결혼뎐 [2023-2024]

mademoiselle · January 6

“The Story Of Park’s Marriage Contract” Stars Say Goodbye And Thank Viewers Ahead Of Finale

The stars of MBC’s “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract” shared their thoughts ahead of tonight’s series finale!

Based on the web novel of the same name, MBC’s “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract” is a time-slip romance drama about the contractual marriage between bachelor Kang Tae Ha (played by Bae In Hyuk) and Park Yeon Woo (Lee Se Young), who travels to modern day from 19th century Joseon.

With just one episode left to go in its run, Lee Se Young took a nostalgic look back at her time filming the drama. The actress remarked, “The past year that I spent living as Park Yeon Woo was healthy and overflowing with energy. It was full of love, and it was a year of more courage than ever before.”

She went on to add, “Thank you to the director and writer who made it possible for me to meet this admirable Park Yeon Woo, and thank you to the viewers as well.”

Meanwhile, Bae In Hyuk expressed his gratitude to the show’s viewers, noting, “From the beginning until the end, we received so much love while filming, and I’m happy to be able to tune in to the final episode.”

The actor continued, “Through ‘The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract,’ I was able to learn what a great atmosphere with great people is like. Thank you for tuning in up until now, and thank you for giving us lots of love.”

Spoiler

Joo Hyun Young, who played the role of Sa Wol, shared, “As an avid fan and viewer who is curious about the new futures of the main characters, I’m truly sad that the drama is approaching its end. If it were possible, I’d want the story to be extended so that we could see the future in which they go on living happily.”

“Our drama is about ties and relationships [between people], so I think it’s truly meaningful that I was able to form precious ties and relationships through ‘The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract,’” she continued. “Thank you so much for giving us lots of love, and please tune in until the very end.”

Finally, Yoo Seon Ho expressed his fondness for his character by commenting, “I’m happy to have been able to live as Kang Tae Min up until now. Because so many people gave us love, I think the Kang Tae Min in ‘The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract’ will also be able to continue living happily.”

He concluded, “I really want to make sure to thank the cast and crew who worked hard together by my side, along with the viewers who watched our drama up until the end.”

source

abs-oluteM · January 6

Eps 11 was really good. I had my issues with this show somewhere in the middle, but I felt that episode 11 brought some decent closures to some arcs and I shed some tears. Grandpa got off lightly but then again with his age I don't know if there's any more suitable punishment. I am glad that we saw some development for both CEO Min and Tae Min. Super adorable too was the romance between Secretary Hong and Sa Wol. I am glad she stayed on. For me the greatest selling point of this show is the romance between the leads and the PD definitely knew that. All their romantic scenes felt so genuinely sweet that it was quite painful that he had to let her go...

Joseon Tae Ha is as adorable as Modern Day Tae Ha ...if we had more scenes from the past, I am sure I would be super conflicted about whether she should return to the present day. But all things considered, I felt that Yeon Woo has to return to the present not only for TaeHa, but also for herself. The freedom she has here as a woman recognised for her skills, talents etc would not be something she could have in the past. She would be so suffocated especially when she has already seen what women could be in the present.

abs-oluteM · January 6

Joseon Tae Ha is so cute too :laugh:

mademoiselle · January 6

HAHAHA! Bae In Hyuk knows what viewers want! @abs-oluteM

Spoiler

abs-oluteM · January 6

Indeed @mademoiselle ...the logic of this universe is flawed but I am all for the happy ending hahahahaahah...

And my goodness I was getting SLS with Joseon TH. He was so sweet too....

This scene really broke my heart

Spoiler

mademoiselle · January 6

Yeah, I saw the cuts and I'm like, "Huh?" But I wanted to wait till there are subtitles to be sure. And yes, I feel sorry for Joseon Tae Ha! The irony, really... it is the same person (same actor), but yet, not the same. Dilemma.

The logic would have been modern Tae Ha meets reincarnated, modern Yeon Woo 😅

abs-oluteM · January 6

3 minutes ago, mademoiselle said:

The logic would have been modern Tae Ha meets reincarnated, modern Yeon Woo 😅

I need subs to fully comprehend what changed with her going back. She could not change Joseon TH's fate but why was she able to change the present day TH? That boggles my mind ahahhahah...

mademoiselle · January 7

Behind the Scenes

@abs-oluteM @SilverMoonTea @Tofu During the Xmas break, I tried Kiss Goblin because In Hyuk looks good in there (styling, and he's a Goblin), but boy the acting was so bad. 2 x 12 mins episodes I gave up. 😅 Because it is a web drama, the cinematography and setting look cheap and the FL can't act.

Wahh @abs-oluteM they kissed so many times, especially the chocolate scene 🤢

mademoiselle · January 7

Whoa, this show has zero logic. In all dramas I've seen, the beginning makes sense, and it's only later it started going off tangent. This drama is the first that makes no sense from beginning to the end! Did the webtoon have the same logic and world building, too, because I'll be damned, that is some shitty writing from the author. If it weren't for the actors, I don't think I'd enjoy this drama as much. There are hundreds of illogical plot holes and flaws. So many questions without answers.

• How is Sa Wol getting an identification was not properly explained, making it look like it's so easy to get.

• They open a private label shop under Yeon Woo's name, but how many hanbok did she design that will last during the period she's away? What if she'll never return? Is Lee Mi Dam going to design the hanbok under her name?

• I have a major issue with how Yeon Woo return to present time. She jumped off the cliff and the flowers disappeared. I'd expect her to appear from the pool, but only some time later that she miraculously reappears, and to top it off, in a brand new hanbok and not in the pool this time even though she jumped into the sea! And this time-slip is explained away because of modern Tae Ha's desperate wish. Er...

• The whole time Yeon Woo is in Joseon, never once she seeks out Cheon Myeong for guidance to return.

That said, even with all the flaws, I still declare it better than King The Land. :lmao2:

Some people will (and have) argued Joseon and modern Tae Ha are a completely different person, so Yeon Woo is staying true to Modern Tae Ha. But...but...but they are the same in terms of soul. Technically, Yeon Woo did like Joseon Tae Ha first. If he didn't die on their wedding night and her transported to the future, they would have fallen in love.

Also, I'm puzzled why she still wears the hairstyle of a married woman. They didn't consummate, and since the Kang family tried to kill her, can't she annul the marriage? That said, I'm glad she let him be with her for the rest of his short life. I did wish Yeon Woo will accept and love him, too, to be honest. I want happiness for Joseon Tae Ha, too. The scene before his death made me sad and shed a few tears.

In the webtoon, they were supposed to have triplets. They spent too much time with the angst, I actually want to see modern Tae Ha and Yeon Woo + family snippets rather than another wedding vow.

What are your thoughts on this, @ktcjdrama @gilaswan @abs-oluteM @Tofu @SilverMoonTea (did you already drop this)?

abs-oluteM · January 7

1 hour ago, mademoiselle said:

Some people will (and have) argued Joseon and modern Tae Ha are a completely different person, so Yeon Woo is staying true to Modern Tae Ha. But...but...but they are the same in terms of soul.

Exactly. Makes no sense !!!!

I am still baffled by why her going back would save modern TH . Shouldn’t Joseon TH have a change in fate too ? I need enlightenment….😅

1 hour ago, mademoiselle said:

How is Sa Wol getting an identification was not properly explained, making it look like it's so easy to get.

It’s like implying with money & connections, anything is possible. 🤣🤣

mademoiselle · January 7

29 minutes ago, abs-oluteM said:

I am still baffled by why her going back would save modern TH. Shouldn’t Joseon TH have a change in fate too? I need enlightenment….😅

The only explanation I think reasonable would be changing the happenings of Joseon remove the karma befallen on Kang family's descendants. Hence, modern Tae Ha's heart problem disappear. Joseon Tae Ha's fate has changed. He died in natural death instead of poison. By right, it is the fate of whole of Kang family that should change, because the past makes the future. But of course, since neither the writer nor original author exercise logic or Science, everyone in the future retains their memories even after Yeon Woo change all of their future. 🙄

That said, I don't know if it is translations error, but is the stepmother in present her real mother in Joseon? I watch in C-sub, VIU translated her wailing at Tae Ha "How could you do this to your mother, your flesh and blood?" (literal).

39 minutes ago, abs-oluteM said:

It’s like implying with money & connections, anything is possible. 🤣🤣

I think it is! I mean, we've seen enough dramas (and even read enough real-life Korean news) to know everything is possible in Korea with money and connections!

abs-oluteM · January 7

1 hour ago, mademoiselle said:

That said, I don't know if it is translations error, but is the stepmother in present her real mother in Joseon? I watch in C-sub, VIU translated her wailing at Tae Ha "How could you do this to your mother, your flesh and blood?" (literal).

It says "I am the mother who raised you" ...Viu translation. She is his step-mum even in Joseon.

BaeInHyuk should do more sageuk . :smile: I am enjoying this angsty bit of the final episode...

abs-oluteM · January 7

@mademoiselle My interpretation is that Joseon TH is Modern TH. She just doesn't realise it. After she jumped and before she appeared , they had that moment where he wrote in the diary that he wishes to be reborn and meet YW, then pans to the scene of her reappearing to Modern TH. So that has to be it...ahahahah...see I need to give myself closure or I will feel much injustice for Joseon TH who managed to capture my heart in half an episode. Yes, BaeInHyuk giving me SLS in a drama where he's also the ML :laugh: .

Plenty of plot holes and I felt like I was confused about the world building. But still I enjoyed this show because of the pairing and the rom-com bit worked for me. I do love all their interactions and I was 110% invested in what would happen to them. After watching the last episode , it occurred to me that it would be so lovely if they can reunite in a proper historical. I always feel LSY is the best actress of her generation for this genre.

Oh my they didn't put this in the actual scene....ahahah too steamy ? :smug:

mademoiselle · January 8

17 hours ago, abs-oluteM said:

@mademoiselle My interpretation is that Joseon TH is Modern TH. She just doesn't realise it. After she jumped and before she appeared , they had that moment where he wrote in the diary that he wishes to be reborn and meet YW, then pans to the scene of her reappearing to Modern TH. So that has to be it...ahahahah...see I need to give myself closure or I will feel much injustice for Joseon TH who managed to capture my heart in half an episode. Yes, BaeInHyuk giving me SLS in a drama where he's also the ML.

HAHAHA! Joseon Tae Ha (in flesh and mind) isn't modern Tae Ha. Only his soul is. If modern Tae Ha is Josen Tae Ha, he should return to Joseon with her. I think she knows he is the reincarnation of modern Tae Ha, though. So yeah, poor Joseon Tae Ha. She's technically his wife!!! His reincarnation stole her from him! :laugh: I blame on the writer for writing something so illogical.

17 hours ago, abs-oluteM said:

Oh my they didn't put this in the actual scene....ahahah too steamy?

Maybe not PG-15 so had to take it out :eeeee:

Tofu · January 9

I am too confused to finish, so I read @abs-oluteM Twitter posts and I think I'm going to end this drama as that. :laugh:

ktcjdrama · January 9

On 1/6/2024 at 7:12 PM, abs-oluteM said:

Joseon Tae Ha is as adorable as Modern Day Tae Ha ...if we had more scenes from the past, I am sure I would be super conflicted about whether she should return to the present day. But all things considered, I felt that Yeon Woo has to return to the present not only for TaeHa, but also for herself. The freedom she has here as a woman recognised for her skills, talents etc would not be something she could have in the past. She would be so suffocated especially when she has already seen what women could be in the present.

Agree with this.

On 1/6/2024 at 9:33 PM, abs-oluteM said:

And my goodness I was getting SLS with Joseon TH. He was so sweet too....

This scene really broke my heart

I cried here :cry: In fact I don't understand how Yeon Woo can stand not falling in love with this person... who looks exactly the same, talks exactly the same, sounds exactly the same as Modern Tae Ha. If I were her, I would've fallen for him.

On 1/7/2024 at 12:45 PM, mademoiselle said:

Wahh @abs-oluteM they kissed so many times, especially the chocolate scene

:laugh: one of the things I like from this drama is they don't skim on the kissing scenes, time/scenario appropriate and good ones too.

On 1/7/2024 at 2:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

• I have a major issue with how Yeon Woo return to present time. She jumped off the cliff and the flowers disappeared. I'd expect her to appear from the pool, but only some time later that she miraculously reappears, and to top it off, in a brand new hanbok and not in the pool this time even though she jumped into the sea!

Major issue here too!! I kept hoping the camera would pan to the pool and show her appearing in the water again and Tae Ha jumping in to save her. They can then hug and kiss in the pool. I really don't need the beautiful reunion in pretty hanbok with red flowers blooming. Maybe they wanted to emphasise the part of the man crying (with the narration) but gosh, it would have been more "realistic" (what am I talking about in a fantasy genre, LOL) or logical that the moment she hits the water because of Hwang, she would appear in water again.

On 1/7/2024 at 2:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

I'm glad she let him be with her for the rest of his short life. I did wish Yeon Woo will accept and love him, too, to be honest. I want happiness for Joseon Tae Ha, too. The scene before his death made me sad and shed a few tears.

Yes, what's wrong with "moving on"? She doesn't know whether she could go back to modern times or not. Why not show some happy times with Joseon Tae Ha. Especially since we know he won't live long.

On 1/7/2024 at 2:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

They spent too much time with the angst, I actually want to see modern Tae Ha and Yeon Woo + family snippets rather than another wedding vow.

Agree. Everyone knows and they themselves know they're husband and wife, very much in love. No need to reiterate their vows towards each other. Spent too much time in Joseon era. Like eg. does her mother need to know that she travelled to the future?

gilaswan · January 9

@mademoiselle @abs-oluteM @ktcjdrama @Tofu @SilverMoonTea
OK. Finally watched it and finding the time to comment. I think the ending was the most disjointed and unsatisfactory ending ever, but I truly wasn't expecting much. The show is devoid of actual logic whether scientific or folkloric.

On 1/7/2024 at 3:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

Whoa, this show has zero logic. In all dramas I've seen, the beginning makes sense, and it's only later it started going off tangent. This drama is the first that makes no sense from beginning to the end!

Hahaha... this! So many gaps we had to fill in on our own!

So here's my attempt to fill up the gaps you raised:

On 1/7/2024 at 3:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

• How is Sa Wol getting an identification was not properly explained, making it look like it's so easy to get.

It looked to me like Secretary dude eventually took on a writing career - he had a knack for story telling and had seemingly written out an entire story for Sa Wol, outlining her life circumstances that led to her not having been properly registered. Remember he told her she had to study? So that's what they did. And then with the likely monies that could employ the right lawyers to get it processed for you - tadah! Illegal immigrant becomes legal. Believable in SK cos I'm sure many NK defectors come over with no papers too. I'm just wondering how they got on a plane and travelled to Jeju still. Private jet? Even then? Is that like taking a private car?

On 1/7/2024 at 3:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

• They open a private label shop under Yeon Woo's name, but how many hanbok did she design that will last during the period she's away? What if she'll never return? Is Lee Mi Dam going to design the hanbok under her name?

My take on this is that it was just a pop-up and then they explained that she had gone to Milan - I shall guess that it was to go to design school. Hahah... so for as long as she needs before she comes back with a new line. In the mean time, her special edition clothes prolly get released slowly. Don't need many pieces each time ya?

On 1/7/2024 at 3:46 PM, mademoiselle said:

• The whole time Yeon Woo is in Joseon, never once she seeks out Cheon Myeong for guidance to return.

I always thought that it was Cheon Myeong who would seek them out. If she did not appear to them, there was no way for them to find her. All they knew was that if Yeon Woo did not return to the past to rectify the sins of the Kang family, the cycle would be destined to be repeated. That's why she had to return.

So this is where my own story logic comes in.

I think she had no choice but to return - she was dragged into the future by Cheon Myeong as a "gift" to Yeon Woo's ancestor for having been kind to Cheon Myeong. Yeon Woo risked injustice and she wanted to repay/bless the family. The repayment was essentially to save a lifelong otherwise ill-fated connection with the Kang family through marriage in Joseon, and then through potential business in new Joseon when Midam was first contacted to do a business tie up with them. Cheon Myeong pulling her into the future was for her to see how things continue to be messy for the Kang family. She was never meant to have a choice to remain in new Joseon anyway, and there is no future version of herself in new Joseon. I reckon if she had simply died as intended in Joseon, she would have appeared in new Joseon as a reincarnated version and the cycle would still have repeated. Cheon Myeong just jigged time that way.

So she pops into the future from the pool, but disappears back into the past through a literal disintegration at molecular level because time was simply up. Sa Wol on the other hand of her own accord got pulled into the present because of her own curiosity. She's the only character who got erased in the past cos she moved timelines into the present. There is no trace or memory of her in Joseon after Yeon Woo returns.

Yeon Woo returns to Joseon and is given that one opportunity to prevent an unjust death for Taeha. It doesn't prevent his death - his heart was probably already weakened further by the previous rounds of poisoning - but at least it's no longer murder and she's able to prevent her own unjust death too in a sense. So at least that cycle is cut in the past before it gets to repeat in the future. Then she sees Joseon Taeha die a natural death. Assuming time more or less flowed similarly in Joseon and new Joseon as parallel worlds, then she's back in history for about a year. While she never lived as man and wife with Joseon Taeha in that they did not consummate the marriage - he was a gentleman to not want to force himself on her given the circumstances of the wedding - legally they remained married. When he passed on, she also mourned for him as his legal wife. They could not have been married for more than a few months, assuming whatsisname was in prison for a certain length of time awaiting his death sentence, then escapes and starts looking for her to kill her.

The content of Yeon Woo's mum's diary that we see in the future ended at her marriage. The future understanding of the story is that that was it. Child marries, no longer part of parent's original household. The end. The story changed in the future because Yeon Woo did not "die" as she was meant to in the past, having been plucked out of the past by Cheon Myeong to visit the present. That present was affected by an amended past where Yeon Woo's parents began to agonise over a death that they had doubts over (no body found in the well, not characteristic of her, etc.) and that brought a new and different tragedy that was not to have happened otherwise. So I assume, if Cheon Myeong had not plucked her out of time, she would have died, her body would have been found, and that would have been the end of her story as it was meant to be. But that did not happen because of the temporary disruption of time.

This time however, when she goes back, some sins are "made right", and she does eventually die a natural death too. Slips off a cliff, alas. And parents have to accept that. Their daughter did after all choose to remain with the man she married, up to his death, and then eventually died also as his wife.

Now, when Joseon Taeha said at his death that he wanted to be reborn her husband (that's what he said, right?), I think at that point she knew that was who new Joseon Taeha was. I think when she eventually died in Joseon, she probably had the same desire to see him in the future/present, so my take is that her reappearance in modern day in a nice dry Hanbok was that she is actually the modern day reincarnation of Yeon Woo, a modern day Yeon Woo (someone had asked earlier how come there was no new Joseon Yeon Woo, right? I forget who asked.) whose past life memories had come to her and she literally walked back to find Taeha waiting for her. Otherwise nothing makes sense!!!

SilverMoonTea · January 9

I stopped at episode 9 @gilaswan, so thanks so much for the summary. Somehow it lost the steam in the middle, so do with My Demon. Both dramas I stopped at episode 9 😅

ktcjdrama · January 9

@gilaswan THANK you...!! :heart:

Now it all makes more sense :yayaya: I am feeling better for my 12 hours invested in this drama.

mademoiselle · January 9

@gilaswan I hope it didn't take you too long to think about this! I'm wondering whether I should pick your brain further to draw out more logic for the writer, or I should just give it a rest and we all move on to enjoy other dramas, like My Demon or Marry My Husband or Welcome to Samdalri, or Like Flowers in Sand. Can you tell I'm selling? :eeeee:

@SilverMoonTea :pandacop:

@ktcjdrama I don't mind this 12 hours investment. I still enjoy this more than dramas like Moon in the Day or KTL.

ktcjdrama · January 10

17 hours ago, mademoiselle said:

I don't mind this 12 hours investment. I still enjoy this more than dramas like Moon in the Day or KTL.

I agree... I don't mind at all, but I did feel better about it now :smile:

gilaswan · January 10

17 hours ago, mademoiselle said:

@gilaswan I hope it didn't take you too long to think about this! I'm wondering whether I should pick your brain further to draw out more logic for the writer, or I should just give it a rest and we all move on to enjoy other dramas, like My Demon or Marry My Husband or Welcome to Samdalri, or Like Flowers in Sand. Can you tell I'm selling?

@ktcjdrama I don't mind this 12 hours investment. I still enjoy this more than dramas like Moon in the Day or KTL.

Hahaha… pick away! I just had to try to logic it out, otherwise it really would have been 12 hours of, “Wait, what happened??” I have to agree with you though, that I prefer this one to KTL.

I shall have to check out all those other dramas you’re plugging! Hahaha. Now for me to also try to logic out what on earth is happening with Cupid. That one is also starting to be a bit frustrating…

abs-oluteM · January 11

@gilaswan thanks for the explanation. Cuz I needed some closure for poor Joseon Tae Ha

Even Bae In Hyuk here says more episodes would have given more development for the show

40somethingahjumma · January 12

I wished I liked this one a lot more. It does get better after Episode 1 but only a tad because of the fish-out-of-water part which is sometimes funny. The rest of it is pretty much your standard chaebol internal family struggle. There are aspects that remind me of Fated to Love You as well. The Joseon period was also clumsy in its feminist messaging.

I am surprised that Lee Se-young signed up for such a mediocre clunky script. With her industry creds, she should be able to get better offers surely? Part of the problem for me too is that she is a far better actor than Baek In-hyun. He's okay but lacks the gravitas to pull off this role with nuance which the role requires him to have.

Sign In

The Story of Park's Marriage Contract 열녀박씨 계약결혼뎐 [2023-2024]

Recommended Posts

Link to comment

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Popular Posts

abs-oluteM

ktcjdrama

mademoiselle

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

Create an account

Sign in

Current Donation Goals

Popular Contributors

Recent Status Updates

Important Information