Record of Youth 청춘기록 [2020]

[bluepebbles]

🅡🅔🅒🅞🅡🅓 🅞🅕 🅨🅞🅤🅣🅗

𝕗𝕚𝕝𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕝𝕠𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

 

An Jeong Ha's House

Sinchon Graffiti Tunnel 

 

 

 

 

This tunnel was also featured in Episode 10 of Goblin 

Located near Sinchon Station along subway Line 2, the long, domeshaped passageway is covered in instagrammable colorful graffiti . Also , the convenience store is originally Ministop maybe because the production already exhausted their PPL project with Subway 

 

According to this blog, you won't expect a tourist vibe on this location because while the graffiti will be eye pleasing, make sure to bring your masks for possible dumped garbage around. 

 

How to get here 

 

Address: 92-18 Sinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, South Korea
How to get here: via Subway, Gyeongui Line, Sinchon Station, Exit 2

 

photos: source 

 

Spoiler

 

[bluepebbles]

For tonight's episode, the most adorable tandem in this drama . 

 

 

 

[bluepebbles]

Knets' comments on episode 11 :

 

The media going crazy with the dating rumours with Charlie Jung, Park Bogum is trapped in a sticky situation..! 

 

 

 

 

1. [+874][-12] I hope the real-life haters and the click-bait news platform taking advantage of scandals feel guilty and reflect on themselves from watching this 

 

2. [+696][-11] The realistic portrayal of the haters was too accurate I got way too angry. I really want to get rid of all the click-bait journalists, YouTubers and etc. 

 

3. [+572][-11] I believe that Sa Hyejun will be able to deal with this cleverly, objective focus and clarity ㅜㅜ

 

4. [+521][-11] Writer-nim, what's up with this realistic portrayal of the entertainment industry stories? ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ It was way too realistic, I got too involved in the story 

 

5. [+513][-12] I can think of that certain YouTuber who carelessly 'exposes' celebrities 

 

 

 

 

Park Sodam X Byeon Wooseok X Seol Inah, taking the best path to protect Park Bogum 

 

 

 

 

 

1. [+416][-4] No but why did they speak to the journalist by themselves without discussing it with the actually involved party?!? 

 

2. [+360][-4] Park Bogum's change in facial expressions and the slight facial muscle movements in his acting is insane.. ㅜㅜ

 

3. [+351][-13] No but the one who's going to become a lawyer should be the one making sure the journalist doesn't turn a fake story into a scandal through legal methods, but instead he's releasing news about his ex-girlfriend? Ah, he's way less cool and a more annoying character than I originally thought, his education seems to be a waste 

 

4. [+312][-2] Look at Park Bogum sternly saying no ㅜㅜ

 

5. [+308][-0] No but Park Bogum's gaze completely changing at the end is insane 

 

Kwon Soohyun ♥? Jo Yoojung's secret relationship has been exposed! Byeon Wooseok X Shin Aera, who are angry from the betrayal 

 

 

 

 

1. [+248][-1] This was the funniest scene I've seen today in this drama ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

2. [+218][-1] Who knew Haehyo would hate it this much ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Jinwoo is in trouble 

 

3. [+171][-1] Jinwoo-ya...... why did you say that as soon as you called.......... 

 

4. [+162][-0] ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ I'm going to kill you ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

5. [+137][-0] I'm going to kill you! ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

[stroppyse]

It's occurred to me that the romance between JH and HJ may be too realistic, and actually, that this whole drama may be a bit too realistic. From the various uncomfortable family dynamics, not just HJ's but also JH's and HH's as well (of course there is love, but people are very, very flawed) to the way the relationship developed comfortably without grand gestures (so far anyway), the friendship dynamics between HJ, HH, and JW, and the raw look at the entertainment industry with all of its messiness, the scandals both real and made up, and the actual maneuvering that goes on that can lead to success or failure independent of actual talent, sometimes this drama can be hard to watch for its realism.

 

And, I have to admit, that makes me worry for JH and HJ when they seem to fit so well and be in a healthy, positive, supportive relationship. Even when there is true love, so many things can cause lovers to celebrate. And, I have to admit that I want both JH and HJ to fight the odds and be able to stay together.

 

So, this drama isn't a tragedy, right? Despite Charlie Jung's death? I mean, I'm not expecting the leads to die or anything, but I also would prefer that they not walk away from each other, especially for reasons other than the feelings they have for each other.

 

@Tofu thinks they are going to break up in episode 12. That fills me with a little trepidation about the next episode.

 

Btw, HJ's ex is pretty darn shameless. I know that there are people like that, so again, it seems to be reflecting realism, but I wish she would get the message and leave HJ alone, especially since HJ has flat out told her that he doesn't want anything to do with her.

[stroppyse]

There are a lot of elements I like about this drama in addition to the OTP, though I do find the OTP romance cute and relatively normal rather than a grand passion. I can see HJ and JH being a couple, and I really hope that the drama doesn't mess with that.

 

Another relationship that I think is adorable is HJ and his grandfather. They are kindred spirits, though HJ is far more practical than his grandfather. His grandfather had noted at one point that the older brother KJ is more like him than HJ is, since HJ is more practical while KJ was more self-centered and not as thrifty, and I thought that was a shrewd observation. It's just unfortunate perhaps that KJ didn't inherit his grandfather's good looks as well, though he's not a bad looking guy.

 

The relationship that I watch most closely though is actually the dynamics amongst the three friends HJ, HH, and JW. They've been friends since school days and still managed to stay tight, but now their youthful dynamics are changing in uncomfortable ways.

 

I actually think it sucked a little bit that HJ doesn't really have time for HH and JW any more since he started dating JH. I guess it's understandable and realistic, but does someone have to abandon his or her friends when going out with someone? Then again, I guess the friends can be understanding and wait until the relationship has normalized again perhaps.

 

But, I think it really sucks for HH to suggest that the ex-gf talk to the reporter without talking it over with HJ. It's made worse by the fact that HH has his own crush on JH, but JH loves HJ, and a part of him is probably hoping that JH and HJ will separate. Even worse that the ex-gf had pointed out that it could drive a wedge between HJ and JH for HH already.

 

I still like HH, and feel badly for him, so I hope this drama doesn't make him look like a total jerk.

 

@Tofu , what do you think?

[Tofu]

I really want to see how the three friends' relationship is going to change or remain the same. HH went out for drinks with JW and he talked about how HH snapped at him. JW's respond to that was along the lines of, "I bet you did it back too". All three friends know each other so well and I will be sad if they grow apart. Their different upbringings did not even tear them apart, why should something like this be the reason? 

 

@stroppyse: I couldn't get to tell you because I got distracted, but HJ met with the ex. She said that she feels bad for doing that to him, testing his love when they were together. She said meeting up with the reporter and helping him was the only thing she could do for him during this time. She expressed that she feels indebted to him which is why he did it. It seems like they might have ended on a good note?

 

Will post more after I finish today's episode. Haha!

[stroppyse]

1 hour ago, Tofu said:

@stroppyse: I couldn't get to tell you because I got distracted, but HH met with the ex. She said that she feels bad for doing that to him, testing his love when they were together. She said meeting up with the reporter and helping him was the only thing she could do for him during this time. She expressed that she feels indebted to him which is why he did it. It seems like they might have ended on a good note?

 

I'm going to assume that the ex met with HJ to tell him that? It wouldn't make sense for her to tell HH about her feelings for HJ, I think?

[Tofu]

35 minutes ago, stroppyse said:

 

I'm going to assume that the ex met with HJ to tell him that? It wouldn't make sense for her to tell HH about her feelings for HJ, I think?

Yes! She met with HJ to tell him that.

 

I was supposed to be done with the episode but got some crazy work stuff that came up. At this rate, you will finish it before me. Haha!

[stroppyse]

26 minutes ago, Tofu said:

Yes! She met with HJ to tell him that.

 

I was supposed to be done with the episode but got some crazy work stuff that came up. At this rate, you will finish it before me. Haha!

 

I'm glad that it was a typo in your original post. For a minute, I was wondering if there was something else going on later in the episode.

 

Anyway, it's terrible how RL work interferes with our kdrama watching schedule! Why won't people at work just understand the priorities! ROFL

 

Also, I now want to see PBG do a proper sageuk. He was pretty fantastic in the fusion sageuk Moonlight Drawn By Clouds which is still one of my fave dramas, but seeing the little snippets of him as Lee Geon, makes me long to see him in a sageuk!

 

Btw, PBG's character name in MDBC was Lee Young, for which PBG won several awards including a Top Excellence Award at the KBS Drama Awards that year and established PBG firmly as a leading man and a star. Not to mention, PBG was one of the hosts at the KBS Drama Awards that year. So, it makes me think that they are taking some of the superficial details from PBG's involvement with MDBC to write HJ's rise to stardom.

 

I say superficial though because PBG's arc to stardom was actually a much fuller, more complicated affair than HJ's actually.

[Tofu]

Haha, I didn't even noticed the typo until I went back to re-read my post. Apologies! I edited it so it should be accurate for anyone else that reads it later. 

 

Going back to your comment about HJ's and JH's relationship being realistic -- it's becoming too realistic that it's unrealistic. There is so much consideration for each other that it's a little frustrating. HJ doesn't want to tell JH about what's going on with him because he doesn't want to be a burden on her. JH doesn't want to tell HJ about what's going on with her because he's busy working. Throughout the drama, I thought that both were great communicators with each other, but I'm starting to second guess myself. They only communicate on what they want the other to know. The communication they should be having, about their struggles, thoughts, and feelings, they are not sharing openly with each other. I was glad when JH approached HJ to talk about the Charlie Jung/ex-girlfriend situation. I wished she also told him about the times she's been upset with him. Can both of them just stop being "understanding" and tell each other that they are frustrated?! Haha! 

 

Interesting enough, I'm watching Brahms at the same the same time as ROY and there are a lot of parallels. In Brahms, the male lead is also really considerate of the female lead. He doesn't share much about how he's feeling and what he's going through because he doesn't want to burden anyone. The female lead wants to rely more on the male lead but she is hesitant to do so. The rain symbolism is in both dramas for almost the exact reasons too. Even the kissing scenes in both dramas came at the same time too. Haha! 

 

41 minutes ago, stroppyse said:

Also, I now want to see PBG do a proper sageuk. He was pretty fantastic in the fusion sageuk Moonlight Drawn By Clouds which is still one of my fave dramas, but seeing the little snippets of him as Lee Geon, makes me long to see him in a sageuk!

 

Btw, PBG's character name in MDBC was Lee Young, for which PBG won several awards including a Top Excellence Award at the KBS Drama Awards that year and established PBG firmly as a leading man and a star. Not to mention, PBG was one of the hosts at the KBS Drama Awards that year. So, it makes me think that they are taking some of the superficial details from PBG's involvement with MDBC to write HJ's rise to stardom.

 

I say superficial though because PBG's arc to stardom was actually a much fuller, more complicated affair than HJ's actually.

I agreed! I hope he does a sageuk when he returns from his mandatory military service. I miss seeing him in one.

 

Haha, I also noticed that a lot of the things HJ is going through is similar to what happened in PBG's actual career. It makes sense because why not use something that resonate the most with him?  

[bluepebbles]

I really like how Jeongha is a classic fangirl even if her bias becomes her boyfriend. 

She's so cute !

 

 

And sometimes this is us when we fall in love with the characters the actors played we want their dramas not to end  

 

 

 

gif source/

[stroppyse]

1 hour ago, Tofu said:

Throughout the drama, I thought that both were great communicators with each other, but I'm starting to second guess myself. They only communicate on what they want the other to know. The communication they should be having, about their struggles, thoughts, and feelings, they are not sharing openly with each other. I was glad when JH approached HJ to talk about the Charlie Jung/ex-girlfriend situation. I wished she also told him about the times she's been upset with him. Can both of them just stop being "understanding" and tell each other that they are frustrated?! Haha! 

 

The communication thing is interesting, and when I finally finished watching the episode, I thought it spoke a lot to their backgrounds.

 

So, HJ says that he only wants to show JH and his family the good things about himself. The malicious comments don't bother him since they're not true, but he's aware that the people who love him would get upset. I thought JH's response about how the people who love him just want to share in any troubles he may have, and that it would upset them more to be left out of it. HJ also commented to JW that he used to just get on with things, and that his family wouldn't know anything that he didn't tell them, but now that they get the smut even before he does, he finds that embarassing. That was an illuminating comment about how alone he really was before, and how he didn't really think to factor his family or friends into his plans before.

 

It also talks to HJ's naivete that he thought about wanting to be an actor and a star, but didn't think of the loss of privacy that comes with stardom. Then again, I think that's probably realistic of young stars, in general. They think about what they see as the good things without properly understanding the limitations or the consequences.

 

JH is also used to being alone and fending for herself. So, she's honest because there hasn't really been reason for not to be honest before. Both JH and HJ were actually in the circumstances of being able to be self-focused, and they seem to be struggling to accommodate each other in their busy lives, and probably as @Tofu says, being far too considerate about things. It's good in a way that they are so considerate, but it also feels as if they need to have a chance to have a fight about something and then make up.

 

This is kind of the way that HJ feels about HH still, though it's not clear that HH is in the same place. HJ is thankful that the three of them are childhood friends so that even after a fight, they can make up. It's that level of trust and surety that HJ and JH haven't reached yet.

 

 

Two other things that actually kind of frustrates me about this drama.

 

The first is how good intentions can turn out wrong. For instance, HJ's father wanting to talk to MJ about whether she can properly protect HJ, or HH's mother pulling strings to "help" his career along, or MJ worried about HJ's relationship with JH blowing up his career and taking steps to protect HJ from JH are all done out of love and concern even if they're messing with things in a very presumptive way. (Btw, the number of dating scandals that K-ent artists have to endure with real consequences is actually pretty mind numbing, so I can see why MJ would be worried as HJ's agent.) Even the story line this week of HH and the ex doing what they did for HJ's sake, I could see it from HH and the ex's points of view, actually, even given their not very hidden selfish motives. Still, a disservice made from a place of love is still a disservice.

 

The second is the freaking voiceovers by HJ and JH about their relationship. They seem to be indicating that they are going to separate, and so it makes watching it kind of upsetting, as if this is actually a morality tale of good intentions gone wrong, and the OTP who both start off in lonely places only to find and love each other finding out that love isn't enough or something. It's this aspect that keeps me expecting to see them breakup almost every episode and dulls my enjoyment of the cute moments and relationships int this drama. At this point, whether HJ and JH stay together or not, it blunts any enjoyment in their relationship.

 

I don't know. I find that I'm not as thrilled with this drama as I had hoped to be. Most of the component parts are fine, including the slice of life approach of the plot, but they seriously needed a better writer than the killjoy who seems to be writing this thing. Anyway, this drama is pre-produced so the writer is getting the chance to tell the story that she wanted. After 12 episodes, it's already been a disappointment, no matter how much I adore Park Bo Gum and Park So Dam.

 

According to the preview, HH is going to find out about his mother's meddling in his career next week. I think that this may cause him to quit and go do his military enlistment actually. And, HJ may be upset with JH for leaning on HH instead of himself.

 

It's not as if I'm not going to finish watching, come what may. I just wish the writing had been better. I'm already looking forward to PBG's comeback project post-military.

 

[bluepebbles]

@Tofu @stroppyse i guess we are not alone on this annoyed-on-episode-12 train 😂

 

 

 

 

[Tofu]

@bluepebbles He needs to join our discussion on how frustrating this week's episodes have been. Haha!

 

@stroppyse: I agreed that HJ only had himself to think about before so it was probably easier for him to deal with the rumors. His comment about feeling embarrassed -- that's probably why he didn't want to share it with his family and JH. I can resonate with this too, sometimes it's a burden to become a burden on someone else. I'm glad that JH told him that having people you means also sharing the burden -- not being alone in your struggles. Haha, the voice overs. I stopped paying attention to them. 😅 

 

HJ's career is on the up right now, do you think that we will see the fall of his career before the drama ends? 

[stroppyse]

6 hours ago, Tofu said:

HJ's career is on the up right now, do you think that we will see the fall of his career before the drama ends? 

 

Doubt it. My guess actually is that it will end with HJ deciding to go to the military. Or it may do a time jump to him coming back from the military. Why not have it continue to take elements from PBG's life after all?

 

[bluepebbles]

Park Seo Joon’s blog for ROY

 

 

 

[Alice Wonderland]

Am I late to join the party here? Lol

 

So I was stucked in ep 2 for weeks since the first ep aired last month. That time I think I was hit by seasonal kdrama slump which come at times. But fortunately it wasn't that long until I pick it up back and start watching from the first again. 

 

At first I have a prejudice that this would be the type of story that will go flat and so so midway. But I guess binged watching helps me to put aside that thought and keep going on episode by episode smoothly. And now I reached to the half of ep 12 which officially put me from 'just watch' to 'I'm so into it' state.

 

The story feels pretty relatable as it tells how SH began from little to big star. It is also wonderful watching how his career ups and down and until he leapt the first streak and get the recognition of all his hardwork. They give the right does of romance combined with friendship and family love. It gives me another perspective of the entertainment world through SHJ and other characters. It is definitely blend all the good story elements and solid acting. Hope it'll continue to be this interesting to the end. Waiting for next episodes. Episode13 to 14 are in this week right? Well, I'll check it out myself later. 

Edited October 19, 2020 by Alice Wonderland

[stroppyse]

Hi @Alice Wonderland, welcome to the party! We're still here, though possibly not as talkative about it as I could be, I suppose. As you've said, I also find this drama to contain realism and the acting is solid.

 

I do have an issue with the writing and the directing, especially with the voiceovers which seem to indicate that the central romance will be over by the end of the drama. It's proving to be a downer for me, though perhaps it's good to be prepared if it really is going to have a separation ending or an open ending. 

 

1 hour ago, Alice Wonderland said:

Episode13 to 14 are in this week right? Well, I'll check it out myself later. 

 

Yes, eps 13 and 14 are this week, and that makes me nervous. I expect that this week is when the OTP will decide to part or things will happen which will cause them to part by the end.

 

However, from the preview, these episodes seem as if they will bring a number of the side stories to a head. For instance, HH is going to discover exactly how much his mother has meddled in his career.

 

I still think that HH and HJ may both go into the military at the end of this drama.  It would be a realistic ending, but not one that makes me jump for joy. (grumpy face) But will have to watch until the end to see how it wraps up.

[abs-oluteM]

Preview for eps 14

 

[stroppyse]

Translation of the preview for ep 14

 

 

MJ: I’m going to sue them! Both the reporter and the publisher!
HJ Father: What does this mean?
KJ: I did nothing wrong!
HJ: Because of you, brother, we may have to make a settlement. Even though he’s someone we shouldn’t be settling with.
MJ: Let’s reveal the text message now anyway.
MJ: Why would we leave the easy method alone and look for other ways?
HJ: He’s a person!
Woman: The next step is the really difficult one.
JH: Just calmly accepting all of your emotions, I don’t want to do it any more.

 

 

This preview makes me want to cry. My takeaway on this is that the furor over Charlie Jung may have restarted due to something HJ's brother probably said to someone without realizing that he was being interviewed maybe? The problem with HJ's brother is that he's so full of himself and his own important and righteousness that he doesn't think about any consequences to anyone else. That is the reason why KJ gets no love from his work place, and he's been feeling hard done by at home now that HJ is making money and getting attention. So, KJ is probably happy to mouth off about HJ and family stuff to anyone who'll listen to him. Ugh. That smacks of realism as well.

 

And, then it seems that JH has already been thinking that she and HJ will have to break up at some time. This is a trope that I really hate. It would almost be better if JH is thinking of herself and doing it for selfish reasons, for me anyway, because we each of us have to be responsible for our own actions and our own happiness. However, if she does it because she thinks it will make things easier for HJ, that is so totally stupid.

 

I'm not sure how to take the end of episode 13 when HJ asks JH why she called HH with her news rather than calling him. Her response is that HJ is so busy to which HJ replies that no matter how busy he is, he has never ignored her calls and always makes time for her. JH's response to that is to say that she believe he's trying his best, but so is she. Because he's so busy, she feels pressure to make sure that in the brief moments that they have together, he is comfortable and happy and she maintains a bright facade for him. This causes him to apologize to her.

 

The reason I'm not sure how to take that conversation is that while there is some truth to JH's statement, it's coming from her and not from him. He's not the one telling her that he doesn't want to hear about her disappointments, she's doing it for him. This actually kind of makes me upset with the writing because why does love mean making assumptions for the other person and acting on that rather than where this couple started off, being open and honest about how they feel about things?

 

Anyway, HJ's eyes in the final scene of ep 13 and in the preview for ep 14 are already making me well up. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to handle watching ep 14 and 15. Maybe I'll just wait for ep 16 and then watch it all in one go, whether the ending is happy or sad. Kind of like ripping a band aid off quickly. If the finale is better than expected, I can go back and watch the entire series over. Kind of like treating myself to an ice cream sundae after the wound has healed? 

[stroppyse]

I knew episode 14 was going to be a rough episode. I haven't watched it yet, though I heard that JH asks to break up? I don't know if I can bear to watch this episode then have to wait a week. Perhaps I'll wait to watch until next week, then binge it all at once?

 

If anyone has watched ep 14, thanks for sharing your opinion on it. Also, how do you think it will end?

[Tofu]

When Jeong Ha asked this...

 

All I thought about were these two scenes...

 

 

Then Hye Jun goes off and have to tell us this...

 

So now my heart is like this...

[stroppyse]

I have to admit that I put a pause on this drama because I was finding last week's episodes really hard to watch. I still wanted to finish this drama because I feel affection for the characters, but thought I could handle it better if I could just binge the last few episodes.

 

I think I had a hard time with this drama because it feels so realistic to me in terms of human ambitions, human flaws, and the complicated emotions that govern our thoughts and actions.

 

I'm writing now because I saw some spoilers that the drama remains true to being a bit slice of life with all the characters growing and maturing, even the older characters. So, I'm relieved and look forward to watching the remaining episodes as soon as I have a moment.

 

I heard that there is a time jump to finally wrap this one up, and I'm going to surmise that HJ and HH go do their military service and come back. I think that's fitting since Park Bo Gum is doing his military service now and I can't wait for him to come back.

 

[gilaswan]

I’m not sure about this drama. There was something very placid about it. It was neither exciting, nor was it not. It was all in all very normal and in some ways therefore not very engaging. Yet it left me just that tad bit curious about what would happen next in their lives. Just not curious enough to keep me excited about following closely the episodes. 

 

All in all, life seems to be moving swimmingly for all of them. Nothing’s been said of how Jin-u’s studio is really doing, or of how his relationship with Haena closed (did it really end just like that?), and we don’t really know how Hyehyo’s career is moving. Did he really become as popular as Hyejun? Well, not every actor reaches Hallyu star status I guess... It’s nice that Grandpa finally does well for himself - eventually there’s a time and place for everyone to succeed if you put your mind to things. 

 

But that’s the thing about this show. Everything seems to be wrapped up a little too perfectly with almost no tension left for any kind of actual story development. And like many of you have noted - is this about PBG’s life? Hahaha...

[stroppyse]

On 10/28/2020 at 4:32 AM, gilaswan said:

And like many of you have noted - is this about PBG’s life? Hahaha...

 

I do think that it superficially has elements from PBG's life within it's fictional world. It's too bad that the drama as a whole wasn't quite engaging enough for us to be eagerly waiting for the next episode to drop. In that way, perhaps it was just too realistic?

 

I'm still trying to figure out what I want to say having watched the finale, so I'll be back to post some final thoughts later. I actually didn't mind the finale too much or even the ending scene with HJ and JH reconnecting much as they had done when they first met.