Review: Buried Hearts – The Fangirl Verdict

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Buried Hearts isn’t the best in its class (that class being makjang revenge thriller), but it is reasonably engaging through most of its run, with some moments that shone a bit extra.

Unfortunately for me, I didn’t enjoy the ending so much, though your mileage may vary. Opinions on the ending are divided, suffice to say.

The thing that everyone seems to be able to agree on, however, is that Park Hyung Sik is pretty darn great in this, and it’s a treat getting to see him showcase a part of his acting range that has heretofore flown under the radar.

THE LONG VERDICT:

One of the big reasons I was looking forward to this show, is the fact that this comes from Lee Myung Hee, the same screenwriter who wrote Money Flower (review here, and Open Threads here!)

Money Flower is such an elegant masterpiece of a makjang, that I was genuinely curious to see what writer-nim would rustle up this time around, given that this story is in a similar vein, what with powerful chaebols scheming for power, and a revenge plot in the thick of it all.

The long and short of it is, this ain’t quite Money Flower, and Park Hyung Sik ain’t quite Jang Hyuk, but this does tickle the same itch, more or less.

OST ALBUM: FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE

Here’s the OST album, in case you’d like to listen to it while you read the review.

Overall, I found the music to be reasonably good and well-applied to score our story, though I can’t say that it actually captured my imagination nor got under my skin.

If I had to pick a favorite, it’d be Track 1, Confusion, for how moodsy and atmospheric it sounds; I feel that it matches very well, what I feel is the essence of this drama world.

Here it is on its own as well, in case you’d prefer to listen to it on repeat. Just right-click on the video and select “Loop.”

HOW I’M APPROACHING THIS REVIEW

First I’ll talk about how to manage your expectations going into this one, and what viewing lens would be most helpful.

After that, I talk about stuff I liked on a more macro level, before I give the spotlight to selected characters and relationships, in a separate section. Finally, I spend some time talking about my thoughts on the penultimate and finale episodes.

If you’re interested in my blow-by-blow reactions, &/or all the various Patreon members’ comments during the course of our watch, you might like to check out my episode notes on Patreon here.

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS / THE VIEWING LENS

Here are some things that I think would be helpful to keep in mind, to maximize your enjoyment of your watch:

1. This is a makjang

If you were to try to apply strict logical thinking to your watch, you would definitely find inconsistencies and logic leaps aplenty.

But! Since Show is a makjang at its core, and since makjang, by nature, doesn’t tend to really care about pedestrian things like logic, I feel like the better, more comfortable to do, is just sit back with your soap goggles on, and enjoy the ride. 😁

This way, when Show gets into its makjanging groove, you’ll be more likely to find your watch enjoyable instead of frustrating.

2. This is not romance-forward

Even though teases that there is a romance between Park Hyung Sik’s and Hong Hwa Yeon’s characters, I’m here to tell you that their romance is absolutely not a key focus, in our story.

It’s more of a supporting arc, and, in some ways, I’d even consider it as more of a catalyst than an arc with actual merit of its own.

Adjusting your expectations around this would be helpful, I think.

3. Allow for the build-up

Unlike Money Flower, where we’re already in revenge mode when we start the story, writer-nim uses a more sequential approach to the storytelling.

This means that we get to see all the bad stuff happening upfront, to get us to the point where our protagonist decides to dedicate himself to getting revenge.

It can be frustrating to watch all the bad stuff happening to our protagonist, but being mentally prepared for it, helps.

STUFF I LIKED

Getting to see more of Park Hyung Sik’s range

I first sat up and paid attention to Park Hyung Sik, when he acted as the male lead in Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (review here!), because his smitten faces were top-in-class; able to rival the best of ’em (we’re talking Gong Yoo in Coffee Prince levels of excellent smitten faces, y’all 😍).

Since then, I feel like casting directors have really leaned into Park Hyung Sik’s talent with smitten faces, and we’ve seen a string of dramas that have tapped into that.

Even in Happiness (review here!), where he was spending lots of time fighting zombies, made sure to give a suitable amount of screen time to his very endearing smitten faces. 🥰

Now, I do love Park Hyung Sik’s smitten faces, but I also felt like he was getting typecast, somewhat, and so, I found it a refreshing change, to see him play in this revenge makjang thriller sort of space.

And, I’m happy to say that he does a really solid job of the role, with some truly stand-out moments that I was especially impressed with.

When the storytelling leans fun and unpredictable

Overall, I’d have to say that the writing is a bit of a mixed bag for me.

I’ll talk more about the parts of the writing that I liked less, later in the review.

For now, I’d like to remember when the writing was at its best, in the most rollercoaster-esque way, which is also when I felt most engaged, entertained, and yes, even surprised, sometimes. 😁

Here’s a bit of a spotlight, from episodes 5-6, to show you what I mean.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E5-6. I’m quite pleased, honestly, that writer-nim’s surprising me, by managing to make our story interesting and engaging, even before we get to where Dong Ju starts plotting revenge.

These episodes, Dong Ju’s lost his memory and I feel like writer-nim mined a lot of interest and possibilities, while playing with this plot point.

This felt like quite the rollercoaster to watch, and I mean that in the best way possible. 😁

It really must be so dizzying, being in Dong Ju’s shoes. Here he is, without his memory, and having so many bits and pieces of information thrown at him by people popping up in his path – and it’s hard to tell, from where he’s standing, whom he can trust, and whom he can’t.

Therein lies quite a bit of the engagement and entertainment from these episodes; I was rooting for Dong Ju to trust the right people, and not be taken in by the sharks in lambs’ clothing. 😁

Of course, on the other side of things, it was also quite entertaining seeing everyone in disbelief, not knowing whether to believe that Dong Ju had lost his memory, or is putting on a very elaborate show.

I kind love how Eun Nam’s (Hong Hwa Yeon) so unabashed in showing concern to Dong Ju, even going so far as to give him her mobile phone, and then call him later, using Hui Cheol’s (Kwon Soo Hyun) phone to call him.

Pfft. No wonder Hui Cheol hates Dong Ju’s guts and wants to punch him out at any given opportunity – it’s just too bad for him, that Dong Ju may have lost his memory, but he still has great fighting reflexes.

The way Dong Ju smoothly stepped out of the path of Hui Cheol’s oncoming attack at the boutique – thus leading Hui Cheol to injure himself by falling splat on the furniture – was really quite funny. 😁

It’s no wonder Hui Cheol quickly rats on Dong Ju to Chairman Yeom (Heo Joon Ho), perhaps knowing that Chairman Yeom would be very interested in taking Dong Ju out..?

I was pretty nervous for Dong Ju, with him crossing paths with Gu Ho (Ju Yeon U) like that at the boutique, and with Gu Ho and his team waiting like vultures outside the boutique, to catch him and bring him to the torture chamber that the other team is prepping. Eep. 😬

Big Phew that Dong Ju manages to avert their entrapment, thanks to the nice boutique manager who invites him inside to tell him everything she knows about his past, and thanks to Dong Ju being careful to ask for another exit.

I do like this idea that Dong Ju’s past kindness to others are now paying dividends in the present, when he doesn’t even remember these people.

I’m including the nice boutique manager in this, because it just seems to me that she thinks well of Dong Ju, based on their past interactions, and then there’s also the restaurant manager who remembers Dong Ju and mentions him to Chairman Cha (Woo Hyun) – which is how Chairman Cha even comes to know that Dong Ju is back in Seoul.

I’m glad that Chairman Cha gets to Dong Ju before Gu Ho’s team, but I can understand Dong Ju being wary and running away – just in case.

This does also make for some very engaging twists in our narrative, coz we just can’t predict how Dong Ju would react to any single character.

[END SPOILER]

STUFF THAT WAS OK

When Show stretches logic

I’ve seen mixed reactions to this show, and I feel like there is a fair amount of criticism for this story and how a lot of stuff doesn’t make sense.

I’d normally agree with that, except in this case, because in makjangs, stuff doesn’t actually need to be all that logical.

The fun is in how soapy and larger-than-life melodramatic it gets, and I do think that stretching logic, is all part of the deal.

And so, whenever Show stretched logic, I was mostly fine to just roll with it.

Here are a few instances of logic-stretching, for the record.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E7-8. It’s stretching logic for sure, but I love that Dong Ju’s able to sneak out, steal Cho Yang Chun (Kim Ki Moo), give him one heck of a beating, and then bundle him away, and zoom back to the funeral without ever losing his breath.

The way he saunters back into the funeral hall without a hair out of place, was pretty darn satisfying, even though I knew I was willfully ignoring gaps in logic. 😁

Same thing with the way we see Dong Ju literally climbing through the sewage pipes and emerging through the sewage cap covers, in order to eavesdrop on the dude who’d just met Chairman Yeom in place of the Elder (Choi Kwang Il).

That’s a logic stretch for sure, but whatever; it’s something that helps Dong Ju in his plan, and makes him look clever and resourceful, so I’ll roll with it.

E7-8. It’s completely illogical that Dong Ju would be able to leap to his own defense like that, after all that he’s been through – he even had to be resuscitated after flatlining! – but I’m willingly throwing logic out the window here, for the thrill of the moment.

I mean, Dong Ju vaulting into super fight mode, right from being motionless in bed? Yes please! 🤩

E11-12. On the matter of the newspaper article about the accident, I’m intrigued by the fact that the article states that 3 people died, and 1 was critically injured.

Because, if Dong Ju survived the accident, then who’s the third person who died in the accident..? Or does that detail not matter, because this is a makjang..? 😁

And.. because this is a makjang, I guess we have to excuse the highly unprofessional behavior of Dr. Kang (Noh Susanna), in not only agreeing to let her father (Kim Hak Seon) use the laptop where she’d just been watching her confidential session with Dong Ju, but then actually sitting down and telling her dad actual details, after she realizes that Dad’s watched the video.

Facepalm. She’s pretty much like, well, since we’ve already dipped a toe in, might as well as full-body dive all the way in. 👀

I’m suspending disbelief a fair bit around the accident itself, because how did young Dong Ju even see the toy dog bobbing on the dashboard of Heo Il Do’s (Lee Hae Young) car, since the car had been a distance behind the care he was in?

And how did Dong Ju even survive? Did he just.. open the car door and step out of the car, while Heo Il Do was psyching himself up to do the deed?

There are lots of question marks in this whole thing, but in the spirit of this being a makjang, I’m closing both eyes, and just rolling with it.

Like, sure, Dong Ju survived somehow, despite not being able to get out of the car earlier, and not only that, he even managed to stand over Heo Il Do, after Heo Il Do had pulled himself up, off the side of the cliff..?

And then, he’d somehow walked along the railway (which, there’s no railway at the accident site?) until he’d found his new family..? It’s.. pretty out there. 🤭

[END SPOILER]

When the storytelling leans predictable

This is where I talk about when the writing was ok for me, in that, I didn’t actually mind when it was sometimes a little predictable.

(There were other times when I was actually underwhelmed by the writing, but I’ll talk about that later, in another section.)

Of course, whether or not you find the same beats predictable, really depends on how drama-experienced you are.

As a long-time drama watcher, I found certain beats pretty easy to spot from a mile away, but if you’re newish to dramas, you might not feel the same way (which would be great for you, since unpredictability is where the fun lies, with this drama 😁).

In this spoiler section, I give the quickish spotlight to an early example of when I was able to see a plot development coming, before it actually happened.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. I think my drama miles are showing, in that I actually could predict the outcome of episode 1 from a mile away. 😅

I’m guessing if that you’re newer to makjang, or just dramas in general, then the big reveal at the end of episode 1 – that Dong Ju’s girlfriend Eun Nam, is actually Jennifer Heo, the granddaughter of his boss, Chairman Heo, and is marrying someone else – might actually be a surprise to you.

Maybe I’ve just watched too many dramas; I found this beat to be quite predictable, but I didn’t really mind, in that, I did feel that Show does a pretty decent job of selling the emotion between Dong Ju and Eun Nam, such that I believe that they truly like each other, at least up to the point where Dong Ju realizes that Eun Nam’s marrying someone else.

[END SPOILER]

STUFF I DIDN’T LIKE SO MUCH

The loveline between Dong Ju and Eun Nam

Remember when I said earlier, that this story isn’t romance-forward?

This isn’t immediately obvious, because in episode 1, we see that Dong Ju and Eun Nam are very much in love.

However, by our story’s mid-point, it really becomes clear that writer-nim doesn’t care about this loveline; there’s so little thought and screen time dedicated to it.

Past a certain point, it genuinely felt like this loveline was an afterthought, more than anything else.

Which, of course, meant that this loveline didn’t land with any kind of appeal, or even authenticity – at least, from my point of view.

(I’ll talk more about the details in another section.)

When the Kopiko PPL gets excessive

Kopiko’s been around Dramaland for quite a while now, so if you’ve spent enough time watching dramas, you’d have seen Kopiko around, being squeezed into various drama scenarios as PPL (product placement), to help said dramas pay the bills.

And so, I’ve learned to mostly just shrug and carry on, when any PPL shows up.

The fact that I’m even dedicating a section to this show’s use of Kopiko, means that Show really managed to overdo it, in my opinion.

At first, I was a mix of bemused and amused, but as the Kopiko scenes kept coming, I found myself groaning and rolling my eyes, in increasing measure.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E11-12. Usually, dramas either have the PPL happen in some random scene that doesn’t feel too connected to the main plot, or they integrate the PPL into the main plot.

Normally, the integration tends to feel more organic in a more lighthearted sort of show, like how Undercover High School (review here!) recently integrated a whole Quiznos theme into part of its spy story.

That worked pretty well, I think, and I do think it was rather fun, in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way.

These episodes, writer-nim’s trying to do the whole integration thing again, and I realize that I don’t know whether to laugh or cry, when the PPL is integrated into a show that’s at least pretending to take itself seriously.

When Secretary Gong tells the kitchen staff that she needs a coffee after Chairman Cha’s shock announcement that Seon U (Cha Woo Min) is his son, and the staff whip out the Kopiko, complete with lines about how it really perks you up, it felt like a huge record scratch moment, and such an off-the-wall departure from the bombshell nature of Chairman Cha’s announcement.

I guess how well this works for you, depends on what kind of lens you’re wearing while watching this show.

Are you more in the mood to be thrilled by the makjang, or are you laughing at the makjang?

Coz if you were in the mood to be thrilled, the Kopiko PPL would feel like a rude intrusion.

But if you were in the mood to laugh at the makjang, then the random Kopiko PPL, at a pretty important juncture of our story, would give you more reasons to laugh? 😁

Let’s just say that I laughed, but ruefully.

And then, by the time we hit the finale stretch (more on that later), I wasn’t laughing anymore. 😅

[END SPOILER]

SPOTLIGHT ON CHARACTERS / RELATIONSHIPS

Park Hyung Sik as Dong Ju

Like I mentioned earlier, I found it quite a great to see Park Hyung Sik playing in this darker, more intense space, and showing us layers and corners of his acting chops that I hadn’t known that he had.

I do sometimes still wish to see more depth from him, in the way of weightiness and gravitas, but he definitely demonstrates a wider, more diverse range than I’d thought he was capable of, so I’d call this a definite win.

As for Dong Ju as a character, I am not certain if I can call his journey “growth” per se, but he does go through many stages of processing and emotion, over the course of our story, and I found it pretty interesting, to be able to follow him on that journey.

Of course, it didn’t hurt that Park Hyung Sik cleans up real nice, in all those sharp suits. 😁

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. As we close out episode 2, we do get a glimpse of Dong Ju’s eyes going dark, in an almost haunted sort of way, and that actually bodes well, I think, for how Park Hyung Sik’s going to play Dong Ju’s more tortured moments.

I think it says a fair bit about Dong Ju, that even after Eun Nam’s betrayal, he doesn’t turn on Daesan Group, and decides to still do his best there, even though Eun Nam is literally part of the owner family and their paths are likely to cross.

I was honestly quite taken aback by how Dong Ju backs up the car to run Gu Ho down; he doesn’t show a lick of hesitation whatsoever.

Which does tell me that when push comes to shove, Dong Ju is very much game to give as good as he gets – which, I suppose, sets the scene for the revenge story that’s about to unfold.

E3-4. I was quite surprised, really, at how Dong Ju heads straight to Chairman Yeom, because I feel like for most people, their instinct would be to get as far away as possible, from the person who wanted them dead, and not the other way around.

It’s so ballsy of Dong Ju, to confront Chairman Yeom instead of running from him, and then it’s even more ballsy of him, to negotiate for his freedom – using a fake story, which it looks to me like he’s making up on the fly.

I’m even more impressed that Dong Ju’s fake story actually works – as does his entire plan to use that fake story, to hack into Chairman Yeom’s trillion-dollar Swiss account.

This tells me that Dong Ju’s very quick-thinking, and also, has a keen understanding of the people around him; he knew that Chairman Yeom would care enough, about the 39 billion won that Dong Ju had supposedly stolen, to let Dong Ju go, in order to get it back.

E7-8. I was very eager to see how Dong Ju would play his cards, now that he’s got his memory back.

I’d imagined that he would fake complete amnesia for longer, but on second thought, I do think Dong Ju’s choice, to tell everyone that his memory is coming back, bit by bit, is more tantalizing.

This way, the people who are targeting him, would be that much more conflicted on what they think he knows and doesn’t know, and the idea of them angsting over this all the time, is really quite delicious. 😁

Like, Chairman Yeom keeps swinging from one conclusion to another, and I love the idea of Dong Ju messing with the dude. 🤭

Like when he asks Chairman Yeom to receive the guests at the funeral in his place, while he takes Madam Pi to another room to allow her to calm down.

Tee hee hee! The way Dong Ju puts it, it sounds like Chairman Yeom is the only person whom he can trust with such an important task, which totally befuddles Chairman Yeom, but in reality, this is Dong Ju’s way of keeping Chairman Yeom completely occupied, while he speaks with Madam Pi, and arranges to make his little sneak getaway, to steal Cho Yang Chun from the hospital. 😁

E7-8. I kinda love that Dong Ju sometimes gives Chairman Yeom looks that feel meaningful enough, that it makes Chairman Yeom quite convinced that Dong Ju’s just faking the amnesia.

But then, at other times, when Chairman Yeom is really testing him, Dong Ju really leans into the amnesia act, and so convincingly, that it ends up flummoxing Chairman Yeom.

Like that moment at Chairman Yeom’s house, when Dong Ju pulls the gun from Gu Ho and trains it on himself, saying that he’s tired of trying to find his memories, and he’ll just end it all – which leads Chairman Yeom to plead with him not to do anything rash, and that it was all a misunderstanding. 🤭

At the same time, I do think it’s helpful that we get to see Dong Ju weeping at home, and grieving for Sister Agnes (Han Ji Hye); this adds a nice layer of poignance to everything that he’s doing, in playing this dangerous game with Chairman Yeom.

E7-8. I was a little stunned at the way Dong Ju really leans into eating those cinnamon cookies, because he knows that he’s being tested.

Well. It’s a test from Heo Il Do’s point of view, though it’s an assassination, from Chairman Yeom’s point of view. 😅

I’d imagined that Dong Ju would eat some of the cookies on his plate; enough to trigger a strong allergic reaction, but not enough to put his life at actual risk.

But no. He eats every cookie on his plate, and ends up actually almost dying, and I’m shaking my head a little bit, at the drama of it all – until I remember that this is the kind of stuff that contributes to Show’s makjang performance, and then I’m like, Ahh, ok, fine. 😁

E9-10. I did think it was smart of Dong Ju to intervene in the attempt on Eun Nam’s life the way he does, over the phone, and using the Administrator to his advantage.

I like how efficient and clever that is; Dong Ju doesn’t even need to leave his hospital room, in order to save Eun Nam. 😁

Ok, but he does rush over to see Eun Nam anyway, while looking pretty cool on his motorbike, and I do like that he’s sharp to spot the dude hiding in her car, and beats him senseless.

Any reason to present Dong Ju as cool and capable, y’know?

On that note, I also wanted to say that Dong Ju’s looking mighty fine, these episodes, with the sharp suits and the too-cool-for-school badass attitude laced with definite hints of defiance. 😁

I have to confess that I think the opportunity to just gaze at Park Hyung Sik in this very handsome space, is accounting for a good chunk of my goodwill towards this show, and my desire to keep watching. 😁

And, still on that train of thought, of Dong Ju being very cool, I got a nice big kick out of Dong Ju hacking into Heo Il Do’s phone, and not just getting all the contents, but even calling Chairman Yeom.

The reason this is so delicious, is because Chairman Yeom’s waiting for Heo Il Do to report that he’s successfully killed off Dong Ju, and instead, what he gets is Dong Ju using Heo Il Do’s phone to call him, hahaha. 🤭

Yes, I did delight in a good bit of schadenfreude there. 😁

Even better, that Dong Ju just hangs up on Chairman Yeom, leaving him yelling ineffectually at his phone – where the line has gone dead.

And then even cooler, that when Chairman Yeom calls the Administrator to instruct him to hold off on Eun Nam’s elimination for now – it’s Dong Ju who answers.

Tee hee hee!! I just found this chain of events extremely delightful, because of how frustrated and hapless it all leaves Chairman Yeom. 😁

And then there’s how Dong Ju walks right into Chairman Yeom’s home, and presents yet another surprise – the Elder, on the other end of the line, instructing Chairman Yeom to stop threatening Dong Ju, and even telling him to let Dong Ju handle the money matters, going forward.

Yes, it’s true that we later hear the Elder – who just happens to be President of the country – say that he doesn’t trust Dong Ju himself, but the fact that Dong Ju’s officially got the Elder backing him, is a big deal indeed.

I would believe that this pressure from the Elder, would successfully get the ceasefire between Dong Ju and Chairman Yeom, which is what Dong Ju wants, while he gathers more of his cards together.

It’s a highly unusual situation, but Show does a decent job of selling how this could actually be possible.

I just kind of take satisfaction from any situation where Dong Ju gets in Chairman Yeom’s way, like when Chairman Yeom’s on the cusp of agreeing with Heo Il Do that he’d like Chairman Cha to give him money directly, and Dong Ju steps in to say that Chairman Yeom values his dignity in front of the Elder above all else – thus putting a stop to it, coz Chairman Yeom can’t disagree with that, muahaha.

E11-12. I will say that as Dong Ju tests the waters and tests hypotheses about his parentage, Park Hyung Sik’s delivering some really nice moments; I feel like we’re getting to see aspects of his acting range that haven’t typically been on display, in his other shows.

Like the way he approaches Secretary Gong (Seo Gyung Hwa), to test her reaction to the photograph, which his how he confirms that the boy in the photograph is Seong Hyeon.

He’s mostly casually detached, but there’s definitely a layer of intimidation there, and at the same time, there’s also a touch of plaintiveness – amid the intimidation – as he asks her, firmly, to keep his secret for him.

And then, in the car, when Dong Ju’s alone, and looking through the gift that his alleged father had left behind for him, there’s vulnerability, sadness, and wistfulness, all mixed together in his tears.

I thought that was nicely done.

It’s.. interesting, to watch Park Hyung Sik in this space, and see how he interprets the various moments.

I was surprised to see Dong Ju rip up the picture and vow that this is the end of his fate with his alleged father, but I guess this was him wanting to protect Eun Nam from the supposed truth, that they’re likely to be siblings.

Yes, it’s true that a DNA test would settle this dilemma once and for all, and Dong Ju would know for sure whether he and Eun Nam are related, but I guess makjangs tend to treat DNA tests with a big sense of convenience; when it’s convenient for the story, they acknowledge that DNA tests exist, but then it’s not convenient for the story, they act like they don’t. 😅

E11-12. I do quite enjoy how Dong Ju basically blackmails Guk Hui (Hong Soo Hyun) and Heo Il Do into supporting Chairman Cha’s announcement that he’d like to marry Ji Yeong Su and bring Seon U into the family.

It makes Dong Ju appear extra resourceful and efficient, and I do like that. 😁

And, not gonna lie, I did get a stab of satisfaction at Duk Hui’s (Kim Jung Nan) frustration, that her own sister and husband, would support the marriage, when these are the two people whom she’d been sure would be on her side, in opposing the marriage. 🤭

E11-12. I rather like that rather electric scene, where Dong Ju confronts Heo Il Do in his room, and re-enacts what Heo Il Do had done, from biting down on a packet of napkins, to lurching forward in his car.

It does come off as a little nuts, with Dong Ju shouting, “Bang!” and all, but I do enjoy the level of intensity in Dong Ju’s eyes, during this scene.

[END SPOILER]

Hong Hwa Yeon as Eun Nam [SPOILERS]

Y’know, I have to confess that the deeper I got into my watch, the more I disliked Eun Nam as a character. 😅

At first, I kind of understood Dong Ju’s immediate attraction to her: she’s pretty, and in that moment where he caught her off-guard, there’s an awkward kind of innocence and charm about her.

However, after this point, there are so many occasions where we see Eun Nam behaving in self-focused ways, where she’s nonchalantly unapologetic about being selfish, and acts like she’s entitled to the choices that she makes, that I just couldn’t help disliking her.

When I think about it, she hurts both Dong Ju and Hui Cheol in very deep ways, and we don’t actually see her apologizing to either of them, for inflicting that pain.

Through it all, I found myself feeling sorry for Dong Ju and Hui Cheol, because both of them invest real feelings in their relationships with Eun Nam, but end up getting played out by her.

Yes, she does choose to divorce Hui Cheol, because she suddenly realizes that Dong Ju’s important to her, but really, nothing comes out of this, except Hui Cheol getting beaten up by his uncle Chairman Yeom, as punishment for being weak, and letting Eun Nam get away without having to pay the divorce penalty.

She’s not one of my favorite characters, clearly. 😅

Dong Ju and Eun Nam [SPOILERS]

Even from fairly early in our story, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the loveline between Dong Ju and Eun Nam, in that I wasn’t entirely sure if I even wanted them to be together.

After all, Eun Nam had lied to Dong Ju for the entirety of their relationship, about her identity, and the fact that she would ultimately marry someone else, and then had been completely unapologetic about it.

I don’t know if it had to do with the way Hong Hwa Yeon’s delivery; it always looked to me like Eun Nam felt entitled to all the selfish decisions that she made.

That said, I did feel, for a while, rather morbidly fascinated with the way Dong Ju seemed to be so madly in love with Eun Nam, in spite of every bizarre, twisted thing that had transpired.

I suppose it’s kind of romantic, in a warped kind of way, that they’re so intoxicated by each other, even though they’re in this very bizarre situation where she’s married to someone else, and he’s still her grandfather’s righthandman?

As time passes, though, I realized that there was very little communication between Dong Ju and Eun Nam, and they each weren’t telling the other person very important things, on a regular basis.

That just didn’t sit well with me; like, why should I root for a relationship that’s got so little going for it, y’know?

Plus, like I mentioned earlier, writer-nim dedicated less and less time and focus on this relationship, which reinforced my increasing sense that this relationship wasn’t important at all, at the end of the day.

Dong Ju and Won Bae

Although this relationship is more of a supporting arc than anything, I actually found myself liking the connection between Dong Ju and Won Bae, even more than the connection between Dong Ju and Eun Nam. 😁

There’s so much loyalty and solidarity in this brotherhood, despite the rather random nature of their first meeting, and I liked that a lot.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E3-4. I actually like Dong Ju’s new and instant friendship with Bae Won Bae, the fisherman who saves him.

I do find it very endearing that Bae Won Bae would take Dong Ju under his wing so completely, and go so such lengths to help him.

I think it’s partly because of the kind of responsibility you tends to feel, when you’re the only option available to someone else, and partly, I think that this could just be Bae Won Bae’s personality; that he’s kind and helpful.

E3-4. I did find it quite amusing, to see Dong Ju and Bae Yong Bae try to piece together what had happened, based on the few fragments of information that they have; that perhaps Dong Ju had been attacked on the way to his wedding, and perhaps his car had crashed into a side rail and that’s how he’d ended up in the water, and perhaps the lone person whose number is on his phone, is the one who’d betrayed him.

It’s honestly like they’re writing their own makjang, and I’m suitably tickled by it. 🤭

E3-4. I did giggle at the fact that Bae Yong Bae’s final act before scurrying out of his temporary home with Dong Ju, is ripping off his mustache and beard.

Such dramatic effect – and yet, here I am, wondering if doing that in that location, would defeat the purpose, since anyone looking for him, would realize that they’re not looking for a bearded dude after all..? 🤭

E7-8. I do love that we’re seeing the return of Bae Won Bae, who’s just swanning about in disguise and doing whatever Dong Ju needs him to do, like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

I know it’s not the main point of our story, but I am loving this detail, that Bae Won Bae’s grown so attached to Dong Ju, that he would be so loyal to him, as his brother-in-arms, when he’d started out as the random fisherman who’d found Dong Ju washed up on the beach. 😁

I also really love the idea that Dong Ju’s got someone who’s got his back in such an all-in sort of way, on this crazy journey. 🥲

[END SPOILER]

Lee Hae Young as Heo Il Do

I get the impression that opinions are divided over Lee Hae Young’s delivery of Heo Il Do as a character, with some folks feeling that he mostly just wears the one expression, more or less.

I personally thought Lee Hae Young’s delivery was very solid, and I found Heo Il Do quite possibly the most tragically fascinating of all, in our story world.

That said, we do spend a good chunk of our story with Heo Il Do’s backstory remaining quite ambiguous and murky, and I’m thinking that perhaps that’s where folks who don’t care too much for Lee Hae Young’s delivery of Heo Il Do, are coming from.

Through much of my watch, I found it pretty interesting to try to figure out what made Heo Il Do tick; like, why would he allow Chairman Yeom so much influence over himself?

It’s only in the late stretch of our story, that Show gives us the full picture, so I’ll talk more about Heo In Do, in my spotlight on the penultimate episodes.

Heo Joon Ho as Chairman Yeom [SPOILERS]

I think Heo Joon Ho does a decently good job of being our story’s Big Bad, though I have to say, I don’t think that this is Heo Joon Ho’s best work. 😅

Ultimately, I think it boils down to the writing, which makes him out to be a pretty two-dimensional sort of villain, when I think about it.

What I mean is, there isn’t much in the way of nuance, when it comes to Chairman Yeom’s thoughts and feelings.

There’s no inner conflict or remorse around his terrible actions; he mostly just comes across as feeling entitled to these actions, presumably because he sees himself as being superior to everyone else.

Maybe the idea was to make Chairman Yeom the biggest bad possible, but I do think he could have been a lot more interesting, if he’d been portrayed as less absolute, and therefore more human.

Also, for the record, I thought his hair was terribly done; it looked so weirdly matted together, like the stylist had put too much product into his hair, but it was too late, and nothing could be done about it, oops. 😅🤭

SPOTLIGHT ON THE PENULTIMATE EPISODES [SPOILERS]

E13-14. Given that we are in the penultimate stretch, it makes sense that everything’s amping up, and all kinds of stuff is hitting the fan.

I enjoyed these episodes quite well, honestly – except for that Kopiko PPL that just won’t. go. away. 😅

MC shared an Instagram reel with me some time back, which named Kopiko as best actor or something, and that definitely came to mind these episodes, when Secretary Gong goes up to the chef and asks him for more of “that stuff,” and we get a whole scene of Gossipy Housekeeper feeding it to her, and then a scene of Secretary Gong carefully stashing her newly acquired goods in her pocket.

This is definitely not as intrusive to our story as in last week’s episodes, where the Kopiko PPL took place within the context of more serious scenes, but I couldn’t help but roll my eyes, not gonna lie. 😅

I’m trying to roll with the apparent intent of promoting Kopiko as being able to fit into any lifestyle 🤭, even a makjang one 🤭, but it really is rather distracting, even though it helps to pay the bills.

ANYWAY. Moving on.

As the backstory to Dong Ju’s parentage, we get the full scoop of the situation among the friend group that had been made up of Deok Hui, her husband Sun Ho, Heo Il Do, Kang Seong and Gyeong Won, and as I piece together the situation to line up with the outcomes we’ve been told, I can’t help but think that these people had very messy relationships. 😅

Coz it basically means that Heo Il Do had been sleeping with Gyeong Won, which is how she’d gotten pregnant with Dong Ju.

He hadn’t wanted the kid, and presumes that she’s aborted it, but she goes ahead to have the baby.

In the meantime, I have to assume that they grew distant, because he has no idea that the baby is his, and thinks that she had Sun Ho’s baby.

While this is going on, Heo Il Do grows close to Deok Hui, who believes that Sun Ho’s the father of the child.

Isn’t that all pretty messy?? And we haven’t even taken into account the fact that Deok Hui pleads with Seo Il Do to get rid of Gyeong Won and the baby, or she’ll literally DIE.

AND HE DOES.

He kills two of his best friends, along with a child whom he believes is theirs but is really his, and then becomes Deok Hui’s husband.

Just, wow. 😱

I’ve always looked upon this show as a makjang and adjusted my expectations accordingly, but I’m still kind of blown away at just how messy the relationships must have been, to support the truth that Show is serving up, in the present.

It’s an understandably huge blow to Heo Il Do, to not only learn that Dong Ju is his son, but to also realize that he’d killed Sun Ho and Gyeong Won, two of his closest friends, for reasons that were completely false.

Of course he can’t justify killing them for any reason, but the reason that he’d sold himself, isn’t even valid anymore, and I can only imagine the degree of shock and guilt that he must have felt in response.

It’s little wonder that he holed himself up in his room, in the dark, and sending away all his food, for days on end.

I think he was trying to find a way to process it all, but couldn’t find a way to satisfy his conscience.

I believe that he couldn’t forgive himself, and that’s why he tells Dong Ju that he won’t ask for forgiveness.

It’s not that he’s such an evil person who doesn’t blink at the idea of murdering innocents, including his own child; it seems that it’s his way of punishing himself, because he looks so.. haunted, as he talks to Dong Ju.

With all this in place, I find that Seo Il Do really is an interesting character; I find him and his entire situation quite fascinating.

And I do feel rather sorry for him, when we learn that the reason he’s been sticking with Chairman Yeom all these years and being subservient to him, is because of the guilt that he carries from the time when Chairman Yeom had extracted information from him under torture, in his activist days.

Y’know, I can totally buy that someone would cave under torture, and then, in that weak-minded state, be gaslighted by Chairman Yeom in an increasingly vicious cycle, until they found themselves living a life that they no longer recognize.

On that note, I have to say, Chairman Yeom’s being portrayed as a sociopath who takes pleasure in tormenting others.

Why else would he take such care in making sure that both Seo Il Do and Dong Ju learn about their father-son relationship, right at the point of Seo Il Do shooting Dong Ju?

He wants Dong Ju to know that he’s being killed by his father, so Dong Ju learns about it beforehand, but he wants Seo Il Do to know he’s killed his own son, so he makes sure to only call Seo Il Do after seeing that Seo Il Do’s pulled the trigger, and Dong Ju’s down on the ground.

It’s not surprising that when Seo Il Do informs him that he’s cutting ties with him, Chairman Yeom moves to have both Seo Il Do and Dong Ju killed.

I’m a little surprised that Chairman Cha agrees so readily to Chairman Yeom’s plan, but I would buy the idea that a chaebol chairman would show his ugly colors when he believes that,

1, he’s been betrayed by someone, in this case, Dong Ju and Seo Il Do, for not telling him about their relationship, and

2, his position is  being threatened, because Dong Ju’s now related by blood, and is likely to want a piece of Daesan for himself.

It’s a little convenient that Seo Il Do opens the door to Dong Ju’s apartment so readily, without first checking the identity of the person behind the door, but I’ll buy that he was a little tipsy from drinking with Dong Ju, and that his guard was down, because they were expecting Chairman Cha.

Honestly, I can see where writer-nim is coming from, because with how much guilt Seo Il Do feels about how he’s tried to kill Dong Ju, not once, but three different times, and how much he wants to make it up to Dong Ju, him saving Dong Ju, and dying in the process, was really the only way to do it.

With this, I imagine that Dong Ju’s grievance against him would finally be soothed, at least somewhat.

Also, I do appreciate the father-son conversation that we get, before the attack.

The thing that Seo Il Do says, that really sticks in my mind, is his request for Dong Ju to scatter his ashes at sea, where he’d tried to kill Dong Ju, and where Dong Ju had saved him – so that he’d be able to spend the afterlife repenting.

I found that to be a very poignant thought, and a good indication of just how remorseful he feels, for everything.

After Heo Il Do’s death, I really liked two things that Dong Ju does.

1, I like how he basically bars Chairman Yeom from paying his respects at Seo Il Do’s funeral, and

2, I like how he demonstrates to Chairman Cha, that it would be best to take his suggestion, and stop targeting Dong Ju, because not only does Dong Ju have sole access to the inner safe, he also has great influence over Seon U.

I love that Chairman Cha comes to the reluctant realization that he really does need Dong Ju. 😁

I have to confess that I don’t really care about Dong Ju’s romantic connection with Eun Nam (and it feels like writer-nim doesn’t care either, judging from how little screen time this connection is given).

But, I just wanted to mention that I reflexively rolled my eyes at Eun Nam’s first reaction to hearing that Seo Il Do had been Dong Ju’s father; that she wishes that he’d never told her, and just kept her in the dark.

Uh. Way to be all self-centered, and not think about what it means to Dong Ju himself, to find out something so life-altering?? 🤦🏻‍♀️

Last but not least, I rather enjoyed how Dong Ju turns the tables on Chairman Yeom’s search for the Dandelion Files.

I feel bad for Won Bae, for having to endure all that torture, but I’m still quite pleased that Chairman Yeom’s basically outed for all his terrible deeds, by none other than himself, since he admits to so much stuff – when he doesn’t know that he’s being recorded by that drone. 🤭

It might not be the most original plotline ever, but I still found it quite delicious, and am duly curious to see how Chairman Yeom’s going to try to dig himself out of the grave that he’s just dug himself. 😁

THOUGHTS ON THE ENDING [SPOILERS]

E15-16. My friends, it’s been a day since I finished watching these finale episodes, and after chewing on it all, including what it is that I feel that Show is trying to say, I have to admit that I am quite underwhelmed by these episodes.

I don’t know about you, but I found these last couple of episodes a real slog to get through.

All through our story, I’d been happy to go along with the flow, if only to see what Dong Ju’s revenge would look like, and how our story would ultimately resolve.

And, I have to say, that it all felt really.. anticlimactic, to my eyes. 😅

Perhaps that’s the whole point; that writer-nim wants to put forth the idea that revenge is a game where there are no winners, and that people are innately greedy enough, that even if you uproot one greedy evildoer, another one can and will easily rise up to take that place.

Yet, somehow, even with this in mind, this entire finale just feels quite hollow and pointless, to my eyes.

After all the smoke and mirrors, circling, posturing and threats, it feels pretty sudden – and more importantly, anticlimactic – that Dong Ju would just kidnap Chairman Yeom like that, and then hide him away for a year.

I know Dong Ju’s said before, that he was waiting until Chairman Yeom’s life was worth killing for, but this just kind of looked too.. easy?

Yes, there was some mystery and interest around what Dong Ju had really done with Chairman Yeom, after injecting him with that substance and knocking him out, but the wait for the reveal felt interminable, and in the meantime, the goings-on in our story world felt very dry and uninteresting.

In effect, it kinda felt like Show was holding me hostage, and forcing me to watch boring stuff, while dangling the future reveal, as bait. 😅

(Ok, yes, I could’ve just fast-forwarded through everything, and you could certainly totally do that, but I try not to, if I’m planning to write a drama a full review, because I want to be able to give as fair and informed a review as possible.)

Narratively, it felt like an anticlimax, when Dong Ju makes the choice to let Chairman Yeom go, because I think, after all the horrible things that Chairman Yeom has done, most of us want to see him regret his actions.

Yes, we do see him in handcuffs, so it appears that he does face the consequences of his actions, but there never seems to be any true regret in him, which is perplexing and disappointing, for me personally.

Which brings me to the way Show presents the idea that there is basically no end to human greed and ambition.

Like, yes, Chairman Yeom might be locked away behind bars, but with temptation and opportunity in front of Seon U, he basically goes from carefree sunshiney bakery biker boy, to murderous rogue chaebol prince.

..Which is why we see him pushing Tae Yun to his death (poor, innocent Tae Yun, who’d just wanted to get away from it all, and lead a normal life 💔), in order to eliminate any potential threats to the Daesan throne that is now within his reach.

We also see Deok Hui ill in hospital, presumably having lost her mind after losing her only son.

I feel like this scene might have been served up with a dual purpose:

1, to show Deok Hui suffering the consequences of her past murderous ambitions, where she’d ordered young Dong Ju killed, along with her own husband, and

2, to reinforce that idea, that nothing good can come out of greed and ambition.

To be fair, I do think that that is a valid idea, but I do kind of feel like this is coming out of nowhere, a little bit, in the sense that I don’t feel like Show’s been alluding to this idea, and building up to this.

It just kind of feels shoehorned in there, after many episodes of revenge-themed makjang, and it just doesn’t feel organic to me.

Granted, your mileage may well vary, and I’ve come across some fans who’ve expressed that they like this ending just as it is.

I’ve chewed on this ending a fair bit, just to see if I could come around to this idea, but the honest truth is, I do feel underwhelmed by it.

Now, it’s important that I also talk about Dong Ju, because this has been his story of revenge.

First, I have to give credit to Park Hyung Sik, because that close-up of Dong Ju’s face, after he lets Chairman Yeom go, is the best acting I’ve seen from Park Hyung Sik thus far, in any show.

The complicated emotions that he feels, are written across his features. Sadness, lostness, a sense of emptiness and futility; I feel like I can see them all, in his quiet tears. Bravo indeed. 👏🏻

I can understand his decision to leave everything behind, and here’s where I have mixed feelings about Show’s portrayal of it.

First, I’m actually glad that Show doesn’t try to push the loveline between Dong Ju and Eun Nam, because technically, she could have chosen to leave it all behind too, to go with Dong Ju.

The fact that Dong Ju doesn’t ask her to, nor does she offer to, I think, does tell us – again – that their relationship is fundamentally one where self-focus trumps us-focus, and therefore really isn’t the amazing love that Dong Ju had first thought.

Second, I know that suspension of disbelief is the order of the day in a makjang, but I couldn’t help but roll my eyes incredulously, when we see that Dong Ju goes back to the boat that he’d first set sail on, when he’d asked Eun Nam to run away with him.

Meaning to say, Show is saying that in allll these months since Dong Ju had been shot by Heo Il Do, that boat has been just floating there, undisturbed??

Because, how else could Dong Ju go back and look at all the things that he’d left there, like the violin, and the gun, right?

I’m sorry; I’m sure that writer-nim hadn’t actually intended to make me snicker, with this plot point, but I can’t help it. 🤭

It is a nice touch, though, that we see Dong Ju scatter Seo Il Do’s ashes at sea, just like he’d asked. 🥲

Opinions are mixed as to whether Dong Ju chooses to end his life; my take is that he does not, because we do see his hand drop, holding the gun, after he thinks back to all that’s happened.

It’s not a lot, but I’d like to think that that indicates that he is letting go of any urge that he might have had, to take his own life.

I’ve seen some folks interpret that Eun Nam painting herself into that picture with Dong Ju, means that she and Dong Ju have reunited.

I’m of the opinion that this isn’t the case.

To my mind, Dong Ju hasn’t come back, and Eun Nam painting herself into the picture, is an expression of her wish to be reunited with Dong Ju.

I feel that that’s why she muses wistfully in voiceover, that he doesn’t have to come back for good; that coming back for a short break would be good enough.

Everything’s left very open-ended, in terms of what happens to Dong Ju, and I think your satisfaction with the ending will vary, depending on where you lean.

For those who are able to believe that Dong Ju is finally set free, and will find himself, and happiness, this would land more as a happy, positive sort of ending.

For those who aren’t so sure that Dong Ju will be able to find peace or happiness, this ending would land as much more hollow.

Personally, given all that Dong Ju’s been through, and having seen how disillusioned and broken this entire journey has made him, I don’t get that sense of hope, in our final scenes.

To me, it’s more believable that Dong Ju might drift to some island far away, and maybe live the kind of incognito fisherman life that Won Bae had once lived; not exactly a happy existence, but at least one where his life is not in danger.

And yeah, maybe someday, somehow, a freak coincidence might cause someone from Daesan to wash ashore, thus opening the way for Dong Ju to get drawn back into the world that he’d walked away from.

If / when that happens, I honestly hope that, rather than get sucked back into the vortex of greed and ambition, Dong Ju would just walk on by. 🥲

THE FINAL VERDICT:

Fine for the most part, but doesn’t quite manage a strong ending.

FINAL GRADE: B

TRAILER:

MV:

PATREON UPDATE!

The next drama I’m covering on Patreon, in place of  Buried Hearts is The Haunted Palace [Korea].

You can check out my episode 1-2 notes on The Haunted Palace on Patreon here.

Here’s an overview of what I’m covering on Patreon right now (Tier benefits are cumulative)!

Foundation Tier (US$1): Entertainment Drop (Sundays) + the first set notes of all shows covered on Patreon (that’s 2 episodes for kdramas and 4 episodes for cdramas)

Early Access (US$5): +The Haunted Palace [Korea]

Early Access Plus (US$10): +Doubt [Korea]

VIP (US$15): +Heavenly Ever After [Korea]

Related