Happiness 해피니스 [2021]

[Chocolate]

Summary of the disease:

• A person turns after taking the pill.
• It can spread by a scratch or bite, but it is not airborne (so don't need to wear mask or disinfect unless it is for covid).
• Sign of infection is thirst and pupil becomes smaller.
• 601 wife's zombie retains some sense and control - she understands when asked if she wants out of the bathroom, and will hold out on dying because she had grievance that her husband had killed her.
• Han Tae Seok's CEO boss also seemed to be able to control his zombieness - or did he turn because he got angry with HTS?

 

 

• On the flip side, the zombie does not know how to do simple things like open a door.
• The infected can turn back to normal - how? What makes them turn violent again - when they feel thirsty? In that container scene, they were all sleeping quietly until they "woke up". In that scenario, since no one will be safe entering the container, does it mean HTS meant to just leave them there to die without food and water and sanitation? (Do zombies need to go to the toilet? 🤔)

 

[Edit: from @/mademoiselle:

The ones confined in a room are newly infected people and the government is studying them. However the cases are getting more and more and running out of space. The female soldier, Ji Soo told Sae Bom they are always thirsty and they spend less time in their lucid state. The government had no choice but to put the more critical ones in the refrigerator truck to slow down the process of zombification permanently beyond repair. They aren't eating or drinking so I doubt they needed to go toilet. LOL!]

 

On 11/15/2021 at 1:53 PM, ktcjdrama said:

There is only one gripe from me in ep.3.... Whyyyyy did SB let the 601 wife out of the bathroom???

On 11/15/2021 at 2:24 PM, JenL said:

BUT some of her actions are verging on the doing-before-thinking, which is a bit stupid.

 

Agree. It's not just Sae Bom. Even Yi Hyun had these moments too. (1) How can he leave 601 mistress in the house by herself when he went to attend the residents meeting? She could tamper with evidence. (2) He again left her with 601 owner (Oh Joo Hyeong) who took the opportunity to bribe her to change her statement which she did. On the whole, the police and quarantine procedures are pretty lax. HTS and the female military lady are walking in and out of the supposedly sealed compound too without much precautions.

 

So I treat this as a "light" pandemic/zombie drama. There is a little bit of everything - romance, backstories, horror, detective/mystery - but doesn't take any part too seriously. It is entertaining so I won't quibble over the minor things lol.

 

On 11/15/2021 at 3:19 PM, stroppyse said:

I knew that Lee Kyu Hyung would probably die somehow since he was supposed to be a cameo, but his arc and ending was still sad.

 

I have hopes that he would be saved when they find a cure later.

 

Actually, in episode 1/2, I was surprised that HTS let SB leave the quarantine facility. Considering that she seems to have anti-bodies, I thought they would force her to stay and find a cure from her blood or something. That's how it is with most pandemic movies.

 

 

Gifs by @silvertrhee

https://silvertrhee.tistory.com/337?category=1055578

 

Edited November 16, 2021 by Chocolate

[ktcjdrama]

HTS should supply some gears and equipment to YH and SB so they can fight the zombies, instead of running for their lives! 
 

Why am I so suspicious about Seo Yoon’s mother text reply? Is she dying? 
 

26 minutes ago, Chocolate said:

I have hopes that he would be saved when they find a cure later.

 

Actually, in episode 1/2, I was surprised that HTS let SB leave the quarantine facility. Considering that she seems to have anti-bodies, I thought they would force her to stay and find a cure from her blood or something. That's how it is with most pandemic movies.

I am hoping for that too. They never say that he died, so maybe later he will make a cameo again towards the end of the series. 
 

Agree about HTS letting SB leave the facility. Not only that, she is given a pass to freely come in and out. 

26 minutes ago, Chocolate said:

In that container scene, they were all sleeping quietly until they "woke up". In that scenario, since no one will be safe entering the container, does it mean HTS meant to just leave them there to die without food and water and sanitation? (Do zombies need to go to the toilet? 🤔)

I am guessing their “normal” time has become much less shorter than the less severe cases. That’s why they were put in the container? But what were they supposed to do? Just sleep? Why aren’t they chained like the others? The door was ajar when SY went inside. Did his smell of life awaken the zombies? And that’s why they attack him? I am assuming the zombies will not attack fellow zombies. Yes, I suppose even zombies have their code of brotherhood

😆
 

9 hours ago, JenL said:

Completed series mean blocking out a few days to marathon

Exactly this! Long free hours are currently a luxury that I cannot afford, haha...

 

 

Edited November 15, 2021 by ktcjdrama

[Alice Wonderland]

I am totally tricked by the Happiness title they have. Suddenly I see zombies go crazy biting people around. As if covid-19 isn't enough now there's another one which much dangerous and severe than that, a zombie virus err.. mad people disease whatever they called. Like how some might doubt about covid and thought it's a hoax and someone behind scripted it. This drama also has it. That the mad disease doesn't appear by itself. It all started with the pills. The story becomes much reletable cuz living in a quarantine and fight with the disease among us are driving everyone nuts slowly. Not just because you'll possibly die due to the disease but your daily life got affected in every aspects. It is suddenly your world turned upside down. Add it more stress and recreate more problems. I think I get it why they intended to call this as Happiness, it is what everyone's hoping for now. Getting some happiness in that hopeless situation.

 

It reminds me of movie Alive, how the main characters are quick witted and they take into account with the problems they faced. nor SB or YH are easily manipulated here. So it is fun to see how they deal with this more.

Who are the next infected tenants revealed, I'm bracing for it. Perhaps that masked guy in white, the hamburger lady family, the little girl. I dont expect to cry over this so please don't give me tears drama! Btw I like the black comedy they slipped in one or two scenes. Like how that guy scolded SB for not wearing a mask outside or how we learn the importance of washing hands through YH and when SB stopped him to wear the mask when they encounter that white masked guy in the elevator.

 

3 episodes done pretty long. cuz I take some break whenever those zombies are about to bite poeple, I paused it for a while, checking messages on my phone or get some fresh water from fridge. So when I feel like it's less scary I can continue watching it.

[stroppyse]

2 hours ago, Dhakra said:

Actually, it surprised me more that the door wasn't locked up. After 601 guy pushed her into the bathroom and closed the door behind her, I was totally in belief that he also locked the door behind her

 

I think that the 601 guy thought that his wife would finish off SB and his wife would be taken away as a murderer, but if the door was locked, then suspicion would fall on him for locking the door. At this point, they all, including SB, thought that life would go on as normal despite a few infected people. 601 guy was always thinking about how not to incriminate himself.

 

4 hours ago, Dhakra said:

Why did he chose to work at the building without getting minimum wage?

 

Actually, the woman owner of the cleaning business mentioned that Andrew had come to them via a government work program who placed challenged workers. That also seems to be why he wasn't even making minimum wage with them since it was a welfare placement thing.

 

Still, it's weird that he scratched out his picture on his ID.

 

4 hours ago, Dhakra said:

I called pretty early that I think Sae Bom or Yi Hyun will be bitten, but won't transform and get a cure. This could also happen to Seo Yoon in form of a scratch. They won't turn a kid into a zombie, but she could get get sick and get the cure. 

Jung Kook would be the obivous drama choice to let a beloved character, which is close to the OTP, die and create some form of upset.

 

Nice call! I wonder if SB will be part of the cure then because she's special and resistant? I hope Seo Yoon isn't injured. Don't let Jung Kook die! That would be too sad, even if he's the character most likely.

 

[stroppyse]

3 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

Why am I so suspicious about Seo Yoon’s mother text reply? Is she dying? 

 

HTS mentioned that SY's mother and father may be infected, and that SY may be safer with SB inside the apartment.

 

As for SB, YH being relaxed about some stuff, I actually thought it wasn't unrealistic in that they don't know what they are dealing with. SB and YH are also upset with the conditions that the zombies are living in when they're confined since to them, the zombies are still people.

 

Also, not even HTS seems to understand exactly what is happening with the infections. That's why he keeps monitoring and even doing some "tests" like letting SB confront the trainee to see if or when the trainee zombies.

 

HTS and the military medical research have already indicated that the zombies can revert to normalcy for awhile until they're triggered again, and just before they turn, they start developing a thirst that water can't quench. However, it's also been mentioned that the periods of normalcy become shorter and shorter.

 

It's also interesting about the virus being able to keep a person alive when they should have been dead due to traumatic injury.

[Dhakra]

2 hours ago, stroppyse said:

I think that the 601 guy thought that his wife would finish off SB and his wife would be taken away as a murderer, but if the door was locked, then suspicion would fall on him for locking the door. At this point, they all, including SB, thought that life would go on as normal despite a few infected people. 601 guy was always thinking about how not to incriminate himself.

 

But you can also lock the door, wait until his wife finishs off SB and then unlock the door. Same idea. No one would be able to tell if the door was locked or not due to no witnesses. 

 

2 hours ago, stroppyse said:

Actually, the woman owner of the cleaning business mentioned that Andrew had come to them via a government work program who placed challenged workers. That also seems to be why he wasn't even making minimum wage with them since it was a welfare placement thing.

7 hours ago, Dhakra said:

 You always seem to see more than I do.

 

See? Well done....me. 

 

2 hours ago, stroppyse said:

Nice call! I wonder if SB will be part of the cure then because she's special and resistant?

 

Ohhh! Great call, too. She could be immune or created some kind of anti-virus in her body. And since she saved YH as "I'm his lifesaver", this could be the case. She would save his life again. Perfect ending for the lovestory. 

 

7 hours ago, Chocolate said:

Han Tae Seok's CEO boss also seemed to be able to control his zombieness - or did he turn because he got angry with HTS?

 

It felt like he could control when to transform, but while transformed he looked like your average, brainless, blood thirsty zombie.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

Also wondering about the lawyer couple, maybe it's just my common trope of korean lawyer's in kdramas being corrupt or evil, but so far it felt like every apartment unit we met had a (dark) secret or issue of any kind. I wonder what their role will be instead of just gathering clients. 

  

Edited November 15, 2021 by Dhakra

[stroppyse]

54 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

But you can also lock the door, wait until his wife finishs off SB and then unlock the door. Same idea. No one would be able to tell if the door was locked or not due to no witnesses. 

 

Sure, if he was that cool under pressure. However, he comes across as callow and cowardly as well as self-serving. It feels right to me that he shove SB in, then scamper away to a safe distance.

 

55 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

It felt like he could control when to transform, but while transformed he looked like your average, brainless, blood thirsty zombie.

 

Definitely not well explained, how they are able to revert to normal from their zombie state.

 

56 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

Also wondering about the lawyer couple, maybe it's just my common trope of korean lawyer's in kdramas being corrupt or evil, but so far it felt like every apartment unit we met had a (dark) secret or issue of any kind. I wonder what their role will be instead of just gathering clients. 

 

The husband seems very self-serving as well. Since the wife was his secretary before becoming his wife, she seems submissive to his directions. An evil thought crossed my mind while watching them of whether the lawyer married his secretary because that way he got a capable helper whom he didn't have to pay.

 

Anyway, I agree that they will probably have a bigger role to play. Hope they don't inadvertently let more zombies into their building in the hope of getting more clients.

[Alice Wonderland]

I'm all caught up! Soon the apartment will swamped with more and more zombies. Poor that lady hamburger, I'm worried for her old husband. I guess this is the long version of Alive. SB-YH reminds me a lot of Yoo-Bin and Joon-Woo. I like it. It's so thrilling. 

[Chocolate]

57 minutes ago, Alice Wonderland said:

I'm all caught up! Soon the apartment will swamped with more and more zombies. Poor that lady hamburger, I'm worried for her old husband. I guess this is the long version of Alive. SB-YH reminds me a lot of Yoo-Bin and Joon-Woo. I like it. It's so thrilling. 

“lady hamburger” 🤣 The poor woman is about to become zombie and we don’t even remember her unit number 😂

 

[Dhakra]

1 hour ago, stroppyse said:

 

Sure, if he was that cool under pressure. However, he comes across as callow and cowardly as well as self-serving. It feels right to me that he shove SB in, then scamper away to a safe distance.

 

Yeah, he fits this description. But he was also able to kill his wife with a golf bat. So he at least has some evil mojo energy going on. 

 

1 hour ago, stroppyse said:

Definitely not well explained, how they are able to revert to normal from their zombie state.

 

It kinda seems random. There is no clear factor that makes them go back. Didn't TS also mention that some zombies aren't going back to their normal state at all? 

 

1 hour ago, stroppyse said:

The husband seems very self-serving as well. Since the wife was his secretary before becoming his wife, she seems submissive to his directions. An evil thought crossed my mind while watching them of whether the lawyer married his secretary because that way he got a capable helper whom he didn't have to pay.

 

Actually, a similar thought crossed my mind when he asked her to go to the meeting in the gym. It didn't feel like he was concerned about her, it felt like he was directing a subordinate to attend the meeting and hand out business cards. Maybe she loved him and he just took the opportunity to get a free secretary. 

 

401 Girl Hyun-Kyung and her brother(?) give me similar vibes. She does look like a normal, decent girl, but her brother looks shady. It wouldn't surprise me if he turns into a zombie after doing something bad to make profit. 

[stroppyse]

33 minutes ago, Chocolate said:

“lady hamburger” 🤣 The poor woman is about to become zombie and we don’t even remember her unit number 😂

 

 

Yes, we may soon know whether the desire for a hamburger leads to becoming a zombie! McDonald's beware! @TRaNz will have a heart attack thinking that his love for Macca may lead to becoming a zombie.

 

31 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

It kinda seems random. There is no clear factor that makes them go back. Didn't TS also mention that some zombies aren't going back to their normal state at all? 

 

Yes. Also, female military researcher also mentioned that they don't know what will trigger them or make them revert to normal, and that sooner or later, they stop reverting to normal.

 

32 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

Maybe she loved him and he just took the opportunity to get a free secretary. 

 

That would be so sad. However, I'm not as nice as you are and think that she married him because he was a lawyer and could therefor make good money rather than solely because of love.

 

33 minutes ago, Dhakra said:

401 Girl Hyun-Kyung and her brother(?) give me similar vibes. She does look like a normal, decent girl, but her brother looks shady. It wouldn't surprise me if he turns into a zombie after doing something bad to make profit. 

 

As you mentioned, just about anyone or everyone in that building could be shady.

 

[mademoiselle]

@Chocolate Hamburger lady is Unit 302

[mademoiselle]

They have taken a tremendous amount of blood from Sae Bom in episode 2. She was allowed to go with the condition that she returns to the facility and give more blood once every 2 weeks. Han Tae Seok already said to Sae Bom they believe she has antibodies so I do think the government is using her blood to look for cure. Also as we know she was under surveillance, even through Han Tae Seok contacting Yi Hyun in secret.

 

@ktcjdrama @Chocolate The ones confined in a room are newly infected people and the government is studying them. However the cases are getting more and more and running out of space. The female soldier, Ji Soo told Sae Bom they are always thirsty and they spend less time in their lucid state. The government had no choice but to put the more critical ones in the refrigerator truck to slow down the process of zombification permanently beyond repair. They aren't eating or drinking so I doubt they needed to go toilet. LOL!

Edited November 16, 2021 by mademoiselle

[Dhakra]

10 hours ago, stroppyse said:

However, I'm not as nice as you are and think that she married him because he was a lawyer and could therefor make good money rather than solely because of love.

Well, since they are apartment owners instead of renters, I think her potential plan worked out quite well. It will be interesting to see how both of them behave if things get crazy/dangerous. He looks like the kinda guy who would throw his wife under the bus. 

 

5 hours ago, mademoiselle said:

Hamburger lady is Unit 302

 

Interesting overview. I wonder if the units are ordered by wealth. 1501 must be one hell of a rich kid. 

[mademoiselle]

BTS

 

[abs-oluteM]

Subbed BTS

 

[mademoiselle]

Promotion - Build-ING Interview with JENGA Game

 

[stroppyse]

May I just say that the scene that I liked the most so far was in episode 3 when SB calls YH to tell him not to worry about her even though she's trapped, and that she'll take care of their apartment. YH yells at her to explain what she means that she's trapped and where as he's coming out of the lift with the murderer husband. Then SB sees that he's still at the apartment, too, and runs over to hug him. It was just such an aww moment, as she says that she had been worried that she was all alone. That whole sequence explains why I've been hooked by this drama despite its weirdly random zombies.

 

And, post-military PHS not only looks older and more filled out, but he also looks comfortable in his role. He's lost the puppyishness that he used to have in SWDBS or Hwarang, but his acting skills seem even better and more solid in contrast.

[YourHighness]

Why am I; one of the world's biggest cowards; watching a zombie show and getting hooked to it. 

I blame HHJ and PHS.

BTW in episode 5 preview did the sleezy doctor lock the leads and the few apartment members outside with the zombies?

[abs-oluteM]

20 minutes ago, YourHighness said:

BTW in episode 5 preview did the sleezy doctor lock the leads and the few apartment members outside with the zombies?

Yes , it seems like it. I think they went out to get stuff from the supermarket and he took the opportunity to do that.

 

Ooo someone subbed the jenga game

 

[Chocolate]

 

 

[ktcjdrama]

Boo!!  @Chocolate Halloween is over long time ago... 

 

 

Edited November 18, 2021 by ktcjdrama

[Lynne]

New episode of Happiness today.... haha. maybe that's why I'm so happy? 

[abs-oluteM]

The fight for survival ! Think the government is going to abandon them...

Why is she wearing that though? The rest aren't

36 minutes ago, Lynne said:

New episode of Happiness today.... haha. maybe that's why I'm so happy? 

The title of this show feels so ironic right?

[ktcjdrama]

18 minutes ago, abs-oluteM said:

Why is she wearing that though? The rest aren't

Personal gear that she found at home? Haha...

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by ktcjdrama