#honourable mentions to lee sung min acting his ass off-- SJK was adamant on having him in the show

[o-daintyduck]

Idc this was a pretty happy ending. As happy as it could get, considering we spent the middle 14 episodes mourning the loss of a life that Hyun-woo could've had had he not been born dirt poor. It was really fitting for them to set up the exact same time for Do-jun and Hyun-woo to fight for the throne and respect, respectively. 17, almost 18 years. Maybe it's bc I haven't read the web novel but whether the story be a simple loopy one or magic realist; it doesn't really negate the previous 14 episodes. I remember I'd told my friend that I felt this was the case of an unreliable narrator, somewhere around episode 4 lol. Why did HW read up everything he could get on Jin Yang-cheol? He was too busy running around working triple shifts, worrying about his family in rampant poverty during his teens and early twenties to know the intricacies of stock market, economy, Seo Taiji's comeback, everything related to everyone and their mother!? Mason's books are sitting somewhere in his backroom probably all dog-eared right now as we speak. He followed the numbers, facts, remembered each fight along with the contemporaneous event in history. That's why he kept winning. I'm attributing the non-romance situation with Min-young to him not knowing the goings-on in their private lives.

Min-young flashbacking to her and Do-jun's initial days kind of confirmed to me that it was both Hyun-woo's outstanding guilt as well as comatose- time travel to blame for this series. "Repentance" once an unreliable narrator, always an unreliable narrator.

lol where was I going, this show was beautifully acted, enjoyable and masterfully played onscreen. That's the thing about transformative stories, they have something for everyone. The only bittersweet thing about the finale is that it's ended :(