The songs we featured in this episode:
Remember by Kim Jin ah
Silence by Sunwoo jung-a
The reaction of our listeners to our choice of show for Season 10
The characters we first get introduced to: Ban Ji-eum, Moon Seo-ha, Ha Do-yoon and Kim Ae-kyung.
The concept of reincarnation.
The Korean concept of inyeon, which roughly translates to providence or fate.
The three elements of flamenco.
When Kim Ae-kyung began to believe that Ban Ji-eum was the reincarnation of her uncle.
The story of how Yoon Ju-won met Seo ha, got to know him, and died on his birthday.
Ban Ji-eum’s mission to see if Moon Seo-ha is alive and ultimately be with him.
The ages of our characters in the different timeframes.
The importance of pools to Moon Seo-ha.
How Ban Ji-eum finally meets Moon Seo-ha at the MI Grand Hotel and later applies for a job.
Ban Ji-eum’s audacity in asking Moon Seo-ha if he would date her.
How we have so many K Drama elements in this episode!
The shows we’re watching now.
Season 10 is off to a great start! Thanks for listening!
References
The Symbols of Longevity in Korean Art and Culture – ArtinKo
Past Lives: This untranslatable Korean word for eternal love has ancient Buddhist roots
I started watching this when it was first airing, only a handful of episodes had aired; but I was impatient and dropped it. So my memory was a little confused with the reincarnation part, because I thought they were the same age as adults. And that wouldn't have been reincarnation.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, I can sympathize with Seo-ha and his hearing loss; but mine is the left ear.
DeleteYes, the whole test track thing is so inconsistent. In Kiss Sixth Sense, the secrecy surrounding it is a whole plot point.
DeleteLaurel, I hope you will give 19th Life another chance. I agree the timeline is confusing, which is why you have me and Sung Hee!
DeleteAs for Seo ha having some hearing loss, I have a hemorrhage in my left eye, so I literally have a blind spot. I can relate to having some type of loss of ability!
And yes, test tracks are super secret! But hey, this show is not about the company and its products, it's about Ban Ji-eum's journeys, literally, back to Seo ha.
Thanks for listening!
I can verify that he was purposely not wearing a hearing aid to drown out the outside one. I don't wear one, but I do live in noise canceling headphones which do an excellent job of doing the same. Noises like whispering and lawn equipment make my skin crawl.
DeleteHello! I started this show when it aired and finished it this summer, so it won’t surprise you to hear I was very confused about the storyline! I don’T usually stretch out my drama watching like that. I had loved the characters, but had questions about the plot, so I’m excited about this season to go deep in the story with you. Watching episode one with my husband was great. We both cried and laughed and are looking forward to the rest of the series.
ReplyDeleteCan I ask for the top examples of dramas where you find the potential new element « white truck of death »? I was curious about it and Joanna mentioned it isn’t in historicals (I watch a lot of historicals), so that’s probably why I haven’t noticed it. It did made me think of Crash Landing and then the example in See you in my 19th Life. Thanks ladies!
One show where it comes to mind is Vincenzo. A key character gets knocked off relatively early in the show.
DeleteGoblin has the truck of death (though it was not white). Queen of Tears too (though it was an almost hit). The Glory. Doctor Slump.
DeleteI'm glad you are joining us for this season and I hope that we can help you and Ryan understand and enjoy this show! Yay!
DeleteThe White Truck of Death is in so many shows! We mention a bunch in episode 10.2, thanks to your question. Here are a few more shows: Doom At Your Service, Crash Landing On You (they were black), Itaewon Class, Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Goblin, The King Eternal Monarch. You will recognize this element from now on!
As someone new to kdramas this year or so, I was surprised white truck wasn’t already on your list. I had gotten the point of thinking there isn’t a modern KDrama without a truck of doom 🫣
DeleteSo first, I need to share that the day we were going to watch the first episode, on Thursday evening, we were finishing up supper with our two young kids, and the lights flickered as they typically do before a power outage. My wife (Béatrice Lyne who commented above) gave me a look that felt like the "do you have the kids?" So I jumped on offering them comfort as they looked a bit worried. While I was chatting with them about what a power outage might look like, she got up from the table and disappeared… to go download the first episode of "See you in my 19th life"! Being ready to listen to your episode on Friday was her second priority, only after the safety and comfort of our kids. So we are ready and excited!!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to share that a theme I have felt across a number of K and C dramas that I have seen, is a writing team that seems to deliberately include potential explanations for unusual or unexplained behaviour or phenomena.
Reincarnation is a concept that has spanned cultures and generations, but yet so few people "remember" their past lives. In modern western cultures, someone claiming to remember their past lives would be suspected of mental illness! I was struck by how pitiful this young girl’s life was, that at 9 years old she is essentially alone and forced to decide her own survival. It would not be unheard of to create "personal realities" for the sense of comfort and safety in such situations, particularly if she had some underlying mental health concerns; autism can correspond to young « savants » who have their own worlds and understanding of reality, for example. Other characters in the show might just be accept her (to them) unusual stories or behaviour and respond kindly; perhaps her "niece" actually just sees a little girl in danger and decides to take her in. In Mr. Queen the entire story could be an explanation for dreams our lead had while in a coma. Kingdom offers a gruesome explanation for plague, the horrors of cannibalism even in times of famine, or what happens when humans treat other humans as "less". Gyeongsong (not that I’ve watched it, your synopsis was scary!) a warning of medical experimentation. I could go on! But because we see this story from the perspective of the lead, and not from the characters around her, it is totally believable for us that she remembers the past lives because we "remember" them along side her.
Now, do I think our female lead in this life time is actually autistic? Gosh no, this is a k drama and reincarnation is a provable reality! 😅 In fact, I would suggest that these dramas are modern fairy tales for adults! Telling deeply intricate and multi-layer stories that can teach us more about the word than the first level of our characters portray. They help us understand the world and other people in a perspective different from our own to be more compassionate. Which, is why it is so lovely to listen to your take on these episodes!
All that to say, I completely agree that I see themes of making life what you want it to be, despite whatever hand you might be dealt. Looking forward so much to the rest of this show, episode 1 was lovely!!
Ryan, thank you for these amazing insights! We actually talk about your comments in 10.2! You are absolutely right that it never occurs to us that Ban Ji-eum might have multiple personality disorder! This is a K Drama and the idea that she remembers her past lives is what we are here for!
DeleteSo glad you are listening with Béatrice Lyne. I hope the power stays on this week so you can keep watching!
Hi all, just wanted to say thanks to Joanna and Sung Hee for picking another “I’m not sure about this one” but brilliant choice for their signature deep dives episode by episode. Last season’s Zombies in haebak? “Kingdom” was amazing. Thank you. So I trust you. Never would’ve gotten there on my own. And 19th Life has been available to watch for me quite a while. Dove in after you announced it and you were so right. The Korean take on after lives, forgiveness and karma is remarkable. The big themes in this show develop with such a light touch. Binged the show and eagerly await your episodes!
ReplyDeleteWow, we are overwhelmed by your trust, thank you! We *knew* that choosing Kingdom would be risky, but we just HAD to do it. Kingdom is iconic, it's historic and it's a fantastic show and we are so glad you came with us on that journey! 19th life is going to be great!
DeleteFinally, a week without Zombies!!! Also, no beef pancakes, but that’s fine….
ReplyDeleteThis K Drama seems very on brand for K Drama Chat. I’ve seen it before and there are lots of plot twists and confusing things arising in each episode for you guys to discuss. I’m looking forward to it.
I think this is one of the better first episodes in any K Drama. It covers a LOT of ground, it fully introduces the two main characters, its funny, and it ends with a hilarious cliff hanger. A+
The highlight of this first episode for me is Park So-yi who plays young Ban Jieum. She has been in so many shows that I’ve seen recently including Atypical Family, Little Women, She Would Never Know, and Her Private Life. She is going to be a big star – if she isn’t already one! Honestly, I could watch an entire series with her playing Cha Chung-hwa’s 10-year-old uncle! I also love how they threw in a little Korena propaganda about the Dokdo/Takeshima Islands. I wonder if that made it into the Japanese version……
So that was quite the in-depth discussion you had about reincarnation. Although you didn’t discuss how statistically improbably it would be that she came back as a Korean so often! I mean statistically speaking, if you are going to be reincarnated, chances are you are coming back as Chinese, Indian, or African! I’m not great at math, but your chanes of coming back as a South Korean must be less than 1%. Speaking of math, seeing Ban Ji-eum taking the college entrance test made me realize I would forget almost all the math I learned in every life no matter how many times I was reincarnated!
Malcolm, thank you for this lovely comment! 10.1 was actually a hard episode for us to prep for! There was so much going on in just the first episode AND we had to shift gears from zombies and historical to modern and reincarnation, but we are ready!
DeleteLike you, we just adore Park So-yi! She is amazing!
And you're right about Ban Ji-eum's chances of being reincarnated as a Korean. Maybe if your first life is Korean, your chances are higher. Who knows?
You are right that 19th Life is on brand for us. We are so happy to be talking about music, romance, male abs, and clothing! Yay! Thanks for coming along on this journey with us!
See You In My 19th Life is a series which I would need deep dives, with all these many lives, I couldn’t keep track on my first watch.
ReplyDeleteOh Joanna, happy to hear you are enjoying My Liberation Notes. It was my top Kdrama series in 2022. I am drawn to this type of genre, and that explains why my top Kdramas are Misaeng and My Mister.
I voted for 19th Life precisely because so many people said they were confused by it, so perhaps with this podcast, we can help more people understand and enjoy this show!
DeleteYes, I am loving My Liberation Notes. It's a funny show in that it's really slow and sort of sad, but I'm loving it.
I just love love that you chose to feature this show! Tbh, i only watched this in Tiktok as I cannot (for some reason) watch it in full episodes in Netflix initially. Was so happy you chose this show so at least I have someone explain what is going on lol.
ReplyDeleteAbout clothing - did you notice SHS walking on rocky cliffside on heals? that's so dangerous. Like, c'mon, are there no other shoes available?
Both girls 18th and 19th lives are just so adorable. They are such good actresses, and as someone who grew up watching Kim So-Hyun & Nam Ji-Hyun, i just can't wait to see them grow. The young Seo Ha is also cute, if not a bit of jerk.
Btw, I was binge listening to your older seasons while waiting for this episode - and when you mentioned Hotel de Luna and the lucky baby, i remembered your story with CJ and his restaurant freebies lol.
Just wanna share something on the (white) truck of death - in one of the last episodes of Extraordinary Atty. Woo, there's a scene where Atty. Woo was crossing on the street, after confessing something to KTO's character. I was holding my breath the entire time despite it being a really cute scene (with the slow mo and soft music) as I was half expecting that Atty. Woo is going to be hit and die HAHA. Fortunately, she wasn't. But that truck of death was such a shared trauma for KDrama fans ig.
Ate Joanna and Sunghee unnie, you guys came a long way since season 1, and I'm so happy for you and the community you built. I hope Jen unnie is doing well!
Tina, now you have a fantastic reason to watch See You In My 19th Life!
DeleteYes, we actually talked about her shoes in the opening while prepping for recording. We suspect that was filmed using a green screen and she wasn't actually walking on a rocky cliff in heels. That would have been so dangerous, like you said!
The white truck of death is in Attorney Woo! We forgot to mention that! Thank you! It's a cliche, isn't it?
And yes, we have come a long way. I remember when we first launched and it was just our close friends and my family listening, haha. Then more and more people started listening. And oh my god, it's hard for us to listen to older episodes. I like to think we have gotten much better with our discussions, our editing, and our analysis!
Yes, Jen is doing well. She has two young daughters and she and her husband opened up a medical spa, so she is one busy lady!
Hi Ate Joanna!
DeleteIf that was green screen, the editing was so good. That didn't came in mind. But that makes sense, given the ease of catwalk SHS was doing there.
White truck of death - new kdrama element?! haha
Your older episodes were such an amazing reminder to just get started on a passion project and nothing needs to be perfect on the first go! And yes - as much as I love your earlier seasons, the latest ones are such a chef's kiss, so easy to listen to and I am loving the flow of the program :D
Btw, you mentioned a couple of times that you loved 'Lee Goon-Ji.' I was wondering who he was... Then I realized you must've meant Lee Joon-gi! 😭😭😭 Please don't get me wrong, I find it really cute how you used to 'struggle' with their names pronunciation— it's not the easiest when you are starting. But that's something you've definitely improved on in these latest seasons!
Looking forward to the next ones!
Tina, I love you for this comment! Yes, Ate Joanna! Or Auntie Jsa, as my nieces and nephews call me!
DeleteYes, our older episodes aren't quite as polished. We definitely got better with time. Podcasting made me want to improve my vocal presence, so I actually took a class to improve my speaking, like remove my filler words and play with my voice! Thank you for noticing!
And yes, I used to struggle with the names and I can't believe that I butchered the name of my love, Lee Joon-gi! My love!
I've come a long way! Thanks for listening to our older catalog of shows! I hope there's still value in them!
Excited for this season. Thank you for such a thorough episode. Learning more about reincarnation, flamenco, car design secrecy was fun. You also told me who the boy was stealing her money. Had no clue she had a brother in the 19th life. The rest of the episode I found fairly easy to follow - after reading these comments, I realized you helped me follow the first episode. I listened to the first 30 minutes of the podcast earlier in the week and finally had a chance to watch today. Thanks for such a clear understanding and description of the first episode. I followed you easily. And then didn’t even realize at first that it made it easier to watch the episode.
ReplyDeleteAlso I didn’t know what she was drawing in the 18th life until I listened to the rest of the podcast today. Great catch of that detail. I appreciate the care you put to watching and discussing the episodes. I know Queen of Tears coverage was hard for you both - with two episodes a week. However, I’m grateful that I found you through that coverage.