Having Shin Min Ah (Yoon Hye Jin) and Kim Seon Ho (Hong Doo Shik) in the same drama is most definitely a blessing. I've always appreciated their acting separately, but together I knew they would be memorable, and the plotline in the first episode doesn't disappoint. Every since I started watching Korean dramas, I've been putting a list of places I would visit when I travel to South Korea, and this seaside village is undoubtedly on the list.
I adored the first week's glimpse into the very different lives Hye Jin and Doo Shik leadand how they both lived it not just in lifestyle but in means and perspective. I somehow got the sense that something about Hye Jin caught Doo Shik's attention, and I'm not talking about her looks, and it's not until I watched the second episode that I realized why. Sometimes life brings one full circle to a place they've been before just to show them how much they've grown but more and that it's not what stage in life one is that matters but the people beside them. But that's why they say opposites attract.
I respected that Hye Jin was a person of principle and decided to resign and, on a whim, open her dental clinic in the countryside rather than compromise her hypocritic oat or herself. I liked that about her and the little we saw of her past. As for Doo Shik, a jack of all trades, I admired his free lifestyle, but more his random act of kindness to the village people and how loved he was by everyone. It's so true when they say kindness is the language the deaf can hear and the blind can see.
Navigating life in a small seaside village isn't easy. Moving from a sprawling, buzzing city to a small town comes with many culture shocks. The skepticism of random kindness to the nature of local politics undoubtedly presents its challenges and advantages. Small towns are more intimate as they are isolating, and the lack of privacy can be overwhelming, so having to contend with that and everything else, I am sure, doesn't come naturally. But being inconsiderate to people one has to live with who are different is unbecoming. And it's that Hye Jin has to adapt to intrusive yet well-meaning townfolks who are not just her neighbors but her clients whom she has to adjust to and they to her.
I appreciated Doo Shik even more than I already did for helping Hye Jin make up for her mistake and ingratiate herself with the town, even if for a price, while at the same time recommending clients to her. Everybody has a story, though, and I cannot wait to hear Doo Shik's. But by the way, he told Hye Jin not to judge others because life wasn't fair to everyone; some spend their whole lives on unpaved roads, while some run at full speed to reach the edge of a cliff. I got the feeling it would be a tear-jerker. And as much as I appreciate Doo Shik, I admired Hye Jin for apologizing to Chun Jae (Jo Han Chul). As they say, mistakes are always forgivable if one has the courage to admit to them. I love the simplicity of this drama that hints at some tragic backstories. Watch episodes 1 & 2 here.