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South Korea from 1980s up to 1993
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From Wikipedia: “Reply 1988” is a South Korean television series starring Lee Hye-ri, Park Bo-gum, Go Kyung-pyo, Ryu Jun-yeol, and Lee Dong-hwi. Beginning in the year 1988, it revolves around five friends and their families living in the same neighborhood of Ssangmun-dong, Dobong District, Northern Seoul. It aired every Friday and Saturday from November 6, 2015, to January 16, 2016, on tvN for 20 episodes. Genre: family, comedy, romance
“Reply 1988” is the third installment of tvN’s Reply series [all written by Lee Woo-jung]. It received both critical and audience acclaim with its finale episode recording an 18.8% nationwide audience share, making it the fourth highest rated drama in Korean cable television history.
The drama and its cast won the following awards:
- 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards: Best Director, Shin Won-ho; Best New Actor, Ryu Jun-yeol.
- 5th APAN Star Awards: Best Director, Shin Won-ho; Best New Actor, Park Bo-gum; Best New Actress, Lee Hye-ri.
- tvN10 Awards: Grand Prize (Daesang), Drama, Reply 1988, and Best Content Award, Drama.
- Asia Star Award: Special Acting Award, Park Bo-gum; Rising Star Award, Actor, Ryu Jun-yeol; Rising Star Award, Actress, Lee Hye-ri.
How I wrote these episode summaries without spoilers
1. I assumed that you will be reading these summaries and watching the videos chronologically.
2. I narrated some of the main actions in each episode without revealing the plot’s twists and turns.
3. At the beginning of each summary starting with Episode 2, I placed in a table a recap of the major twists and turns of the previous episode. But because you have already watched the video of the previous episode, they aren’t spoilers anymore.
4. I followed this structure all throughout, except for Ep. 20 (Finale) where I included spoilers. Reason — most people want to know if the drama has a good/happy ending or a sad ending before they invest the time in watching it.
Episode 1: “Hand in Hand”
September 1988 ... Five teenagers sit around a TV set watching their favorite show “Better Tomorrow 2.” They are Ryu Dong-ryong (“Counselor”), Kim Jung-hwan (“Dog”), Taek (a genius baduk player), Sun-woo (a quiet guy), and Sung Deok-sun (the only girl in the group). They’re a close knit group of friends who live in adjacent houses on a little street named Ssangmundong, with quirky parents who are also close to each other.
Deok-sun is the middle child of a family with three children; her older sister Bo-ra, whom she’s always fighting with, is a student in Seoul University. Despite her family’s financial problems, her parents are proud of her having been chosen as a picket girl for Madagascar in the upcoming Olympics opening ceremonies.
Sun-woo, Jung-hwan, and Dong-ryong all go to the same boys’ school; being a professional baduk player, Taek doesn’t have to go to regular school. Sun-woo is the class president, while Jung-hwan is an avid football player. Besides worrying about the class gift for their teacher’s upcoming wedding, they also worry about thugs who are targeting students.
The Olympics opening ceremonies are only a few days away, but the families are hit by various crises — Sun-woo’s mother finds a pack of cigarettes in his room, Jung-hwan continues being emotionally distant with his mother, and Duk-seon gets fed up with her parents’ preferential treatment of Bo-ra and her younger brother No-eul.
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| (L-R): Deok-sun, Jung-hwan, Taek, Dong-ryong, and Sun-woo. |
Episode 2: “The one thing you’re mistaken about me”
| Ep. 1 recap:
The adult Deok-sun narrates that she married a guy she has known since her teenage years. Sun-woo’s father died several years ago. His mother thus asks his uncle to be a father figure to him. On the other hand, Jung-hwan’s mother gives him a new pair of sneakers. Despite Madagascar pulling out of the Olympics, Deok-sun still gets a part in the Olympics opening ceremonies. Later, her father buys a birthday cake just for herself. A month later, carbon monoxide leaks inside Deok-sun’s house; her parents bring her sister and brother to safety, but she has to rescue herself. |
The families celebrate when Taek wins the biggest baduk competition in Korea. The boys want Taek to secretly bring them a bottle of wine after he returns from a competition in China, but Deok-sun threatens to report them to their parents.
In October, after the Olympics are over, Deok-sun’s grandmother dies. While travelling to their grandmother’s house, Bo-ra cautions Deok-sun and her brother that they must be strong on behalf of their parents.But when they arrive, they’re surprised to see their parents and relatives partying instead of mourning.
In school, Sun-woo gets into trouble with a senior student who bullies him after their football game. Later on, after puttting on disguises, he, Jung-hwan, and Dong-ryong succeed in getting inside a theater to watch a racy movie. But during a break, they get caught by a teacher; the bully and his group have also been caught.
Taek wins the baduk tournament in China, but he comes home to an empty, dark house.
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| (L-R): Sun-woo, Jung-hwan, and Dong-ryong. |
Episode 3: “Not guilty if you’re rich, guilty if you’re poor”
| Ep. 2 recap:
Deok-sun’s father and his siblings break down when their eldest brother from the USA arrives at the funeral wake. A fight breaks out when Jung-hwan defends Sun-woo by punching the bully. Taek’s friends surprise him with a birthday party. As they drink the wine, Deok-sun joins them. After Deok-sun leaves the party, all the boys, except Jung-hwan, begin saying that she has become pretty in recent days. At home, Deok-sun finds out that Bo-ra has been reading her diary. Bo-ra teases her about the boy whom she likes and to whom she gave chocolates. |
While Deok-sun and her friends from high school practice their dance routine for the school retreat, the boys arrive, and Deok-sun tells them she wants more “ddukbokki” (spicy rice cake). Later, when the boys leave, her friends tease her that the boy who offered her ramyun really likes her.
October 1988 ...
The TV blares out the news about escaped prisoners.
Deok-sun’s parents argue over how tight their financial situation is and how miserable they have been living in a half-basement; meanwhile, Jung-hwan’s parents also argue about money.
Deok-sun continues to practice her group’s dance routine in Taek’s room; she’s intent on winning the Walkman, which is the prize for the first place.
Deok-sun’s mother somehow manages to get some money for her school retreat. Her father also provides her with two rolls of film for the family camera.
At the retreat, Deok-sun’s friends want to see the talent contest of the boys’ school, and so they jump over a fence; they end up having their arm and leg broken. Frantic, Deok-sun bribes the boys to help her out with her talent contest.
After the talent contest, Dong-ryong’s father finds out that he and his friends skipped over to the girls’ high school. As they run away from Dong-ryong’s father, Deok-sun and Jung-hwan get separated from Sun-woo and Dong-ryong.
Episode 4: “Can’t help~ing”
| Ep. 3 recap:
After being teased by her school friends, Deok-sun begins to develop feelings for Sun-woo. Deok-sun’s father gets called to the school because his son has been caught selling things to other students; he finds out to his shame that his son is teased mercilessly by his classmates about living in a half-basement. Jung-hwan’s brother won the lottery, making them the wealthiest family in their neighborhood. But, to the consternation of his mother, his father remains tightfisted about spending money. Deok-sun loses the camera and the bottle of whiskey, but she wins the Walkman. Later, as they hide from Dong-ryong’s father, Jung-hwan begins to feel some stirring of emotions for Deok-sun. |
Deok-sun surprises her parents by saying that she wants to go to college and thus have a tutor to help her prepare. But her father suggests that Bo-ra instead tutor her; later on, he suggests other ways she can improve her focus.
Deok-sun’s parents fight again, and her mother can’t help notice how Jung-hwan’s father treats his wife with love and gentleness. Jung-hwan’s father, however, later becomes depressed.
For the first time in his life, Taek loses a baduk match. All the parents become careful with their words and actions around him; they also warn his friends to be sensitive of his feelings and not to remind him of his bitter loss. But his friends do exactly the opposite — they berate and curse him for losing.
Deok-sun finally agrees to be tutored by Bo-ra when she finds out that Sun-woo will be part of the study group. Jung-hwan and Dong-ryong also join the study group. After math, Bo-ra tests the group’s level of English skills.
Episode 5: “Preparation for winter”
| Ep. 4 recap:
In order to improve her focus, Deok-sun’s father tells her to learn how to play baduk with Taek; later on, he tells her to learn how to solve the Rubik’s cube. In the study group, Deok-sun and Dong-ryong give up on math, but they do better with English. Taek’s friends help him get over his first loss in a baduk game by making him shout out curses and by holding an impromptu dance party. Jung-hwan becomes concerned about his father’s depressed mood; he follows Dong-ryong’s advice and goes along with his father’s funny antics. After a surly time at a restaurant, Deok-sun’s parents share an umbrella under the rain. Jung-hwan’s feelings for Deok-sun deepens; in the bus, he protects her from being crushed by the other men. |
Sun-woo’s mother becomes moody when her mother-in-law comes to visit her and the children. Meanwhile, Jung-hwan’s mother has to leave home for two days to attend to her injured mother; before leaving, she gives detailed instructions for her husband and sons.
To everyone’s surprise, Deok-sun begins spending time in the library. Jung-hwan, however, becomes jealous with her interaction with the other boys, especially with Sun-woo.
After her altercation with her mother-in-law, Sun-woo’s mother panics when she finds out from her brother that their mother is coming to Seoul for a visit.
As her father falls asleep while guarding her room, Bo-ra sneaks out of the house. Her mother finds out about it, however, and runs out of the house under the rain to look for her. To her mother’s shock, Bo-ra is arrested by the security forces.
Episode 6: “The first snow is coming”
| Ep. 5 recap:
Sun-woo’s mother finally blows up at her abusive mother-in-law, refusing to accept the money for Sun-woo and her daughter. Jung-hwan takes Dong-ryong’s advice and uses it to uplift his mother’s sour mood. Despite her parents’ pleas with the security forces, Bo-ra is thrown into jail. Instead of studying, Deok-sun sleeps in the library. As she returns home late under the rain, she sees Jung-hwan waiting for her with an umbrella. |
Taek goes back to China for the baduk competition, but he faces an uphill climb because as the only remaining Korean in the competition, he has to beat five players from China and Japan in a row. Before he leaves, Dong-ryong promises that they will watch a movie if he wins the competition.
As the competition begins, Taek’s father stays tuned to the radio broadcast; Deok-sun and the boys gather in Taek’s room to await the results.
Bo-ra surprises her family by driving home a car, which she claims belongs to a "sunbae." Meanwhile, Jung-hwan’s elder brother begins sending to a radio program postcards dedicated to Bo-ra. When Deok-sun finds out about it, she also sends a postcard for Sun-woo.
Despite a scary driving experience with her family, Bo-ra volunteers to drive Sun-woo’s mother to see her ailing daughter.
The first snow falls, and Sun-woo excitedly goes to Deok-sun’s house.
Episode 7: “To you”
| Ep. 6 recap:
Despite the odds against him and his physical condition, Taek wins the baduk competition in China. To her utter disappointment, Deok-sun finds out that Sun-woo is in love with Bo-ra. But Jung-hwan is ecstatic about it. Sun-woo confesses his love for Bo-ra, while Taek calls up Deok-sun, asking if she wants to go see a movie with him. |
December, 1988 ...
The boys and girls draw lots for their “Secret Santa” exchange of gifts. Jung-bong (Jung-hwan’s brother) wants an LP of the college music festival, while No-eul (Deok-sun’s brother) wants an erotic novel. Deok-sun becomes even more jealous when she finds out that Sun-woo has picked Bo-ra’s name. On the other hand, their parents meet to plan what gifts to give to their children. Out of guilt, Deok-sun’s parents promise to give Jin-joo, Sun-woo’s sister, a snowman.
Taek goes to Busan for a baduk game, while his father is scheduled for a TV interview. While in Busan, he calls up Deok-sun asking for suggestions on what Christmas gift to give.
Deok-sun goes to a MacDonald’s in Gangnam with her friends; there, her friends tease her to call up her boyfriend to join them.
Two days before Christmas, and it doesn’t snow. The parents become frantic about Jin-joo’s snowman, and so, Deok-sun’s father asks Taek’s father to make a snowman made of ice.
Christmas Day comes, and its unseasonably warm. The snowman made of ice melts, while Deok-sun doesn’t receive any gift.
Episode 8: “One warm word”
| Ep. 7 recap:
Coming home from MacDonald’s, Jung-hwan gives Deok-sun hints about what he really feels towards her. But Deok-sun doesn’t understand him. Through the TV interviewer’s prodding, Taek’s father opens up with his feelings and says “I love you” to Taek. For his birthday, Taek gives him pink mittens, the result of a misunderstanding with Deok-sun. Taek drew Deok-sun’s name for the “Secret Santa,” but he forgets all about it. Jung-hwan, however, gives Deok-sun the gift she wants most — pink gloves. To the parent’s surprise, Sun-woo tells them that to Jin-joo, “snowman” simply means “ice cream.” |
The friends meet in Taek’s room and make arrangements for their group movie date, especially on how Taek will get to the theater. While eating ramyun, they also worry about Jung-bong and his upcoming heart surgery. Meanwhile, after Jung-bong’s mother gets a massage, the mothers recall how difficult life was for her years ago.
Bo-ra finds out that her boyfriend cheated on her. On the other hand, Deok-sun learns that her brother No-eul has a girlfriend but is afraid of breaking up with her; later on, she and her friends meet on the street No-eul and his girlfriend.
The night before his heart surgery, Jung-bong tells his mother that he’s afraid of what could happen to him.
Episode 9: “Crossing the line”
| Ep. 8 recap:
Deok-sun’s father has been taking money from her mother’s wallet. Bo-ra breaks up with her boyfriend; while she’s grieving, Sun-woo appears and tells her how she comforted him the day that his father died. He also kisses her on the cheek. Deok-sun and her friends engage Soo-kyung (No-eul’s girlfriend) and her friends in a street brawl; they all end up in jail. Later, after her parents find out that Soo-kyung and her sister live only by themselves, they invite them home for dinner. Jung-bong’s heart surgery goes well. As he wakes up, he asks Jung-hwan about his nose bleeds. |
The year doesn’t start well for Sun-woo and his family, with Bo-ra telling him not to bother her and his mother finding out that her mother-in-law has defaulted on a ten million won loan, with their house as collateral.
Taek’s father becomes depressed because of a friend’s death. Later on, he’s found unconscious on the floor of his shop and rushed to the hospital.
Because of his father’s hospitalization and his coach’s inability to accompany him to a baduk tournament in China, Taek says that he can go there and join the competition by himself. But to her surprise, Deok-sun is allowed by her father to go to China and look after Taek.
The tournaments begins, with Deok-sun stuffing herself with food, being bewildered by all the media hoopla, and complaining about the discomforts of their assigned rooms. Meanwhile, the mothers take turns in taking care of Taek’s father.
Bo-ra is arrested during a massive student protest, but luckily, she doesn’t end up in jail but is dumped on a street somewhere. Gar away from home and with only some loose change in her pocket, she begins calling up her boyfriend, her family, and friends for help. But she only gets busy signals.
Episode 10: “Memory”
| Ep. 9 recap:
After attending the concert, Jung-hwan and Deok-sun have their picture taken. Taek’s father suffers from a stroke due to cerebral hemorrhage. Taek’s father is the childhood friend of Sun-woo’s uncle; because he appreciates everything that Sun-woo’s mother did for him after Taek’s mother died, he lends her the ten million won to pay off the loan. Deok-sun takes care of everything for Taek during the tournament -- food, clothes, etc. After Taek wins the tournament, she and Taek have their picture taken. Sun-woo picks up Bo-ra and becomes adamant that he will not give up his feelings for her. Jung-bong is arrested after he comes near ex-President Chun Doo-wan at the temple. |
Deok-sun’s friends set her up with a blind date, and they tell her to test what Jung-hwan’s feelings are for her by telling him about the blind date. Meanwhile, Bo-ra goes to the library and returns the concert ticket that Sun-woo gave to her.
Dong-ryong becomes depressed on his birthday because his mother failed to fulfill her promise to him. The next day, on his own birthday, Jung-hwan’s father also becomes depressed despite having bought a new car.
During the birthday party for Jung-hwan’s father, everyone becomes shocked when they find out that Dong-ryong has run away from home. Deok-sun’s mother orders Bo-ra to drive for Deok-sun, Jung-hwan, Sun-woo, and Taek as they search for Dong-ryong.
Episode 11: “Three prophecies”
| Ep. 10 recap:
Jung-hwan tells Deok-sun not to go to her blind date. The friends find Dong-ryong at the beach, but with no extra room in the car, they leave Deok-sun and Taek behind. Both busy with their own careers, Dong-ryong’s parents don’t even realize that he had run away from home. Jung-hwan’s father realizes that he always becomes depressed during his birthday because he misses his mother. To the surprise of all the boys, Taek confesses that he likes Deok-sun not as a friend but as a woman. Bo-ra agrees to start dating Sun-woo in secret. |
The mothers go to a fortune teller to ask about their children; the fortune teller says that Jung-bong will come upon a great fortune, Deok-sun’s name brings her bad luck, and Sun-woo’s mother will have another child.
The floor of Deok-sun’s half-basement has to be repaired, and so, she and her family move into Jung-hwan’s house. As she and Bo-ra occupy Jung-hwan’s bedroom, Jung-hwan begins to act coldly towards her.
Deok-sun tells her friend not to confess her feelings to Jung-bong. Meanwhile, Bo-ra and Sun-woo continue their secret romance.
Sun-woo’s mother asks Deok-sun to bring some soup for Taek who’s preparing for a baduk match. To Jung-hwan’s concern, instead of just being in Taek’s room for a few minutes, Deok-sun spends several hours there.
The mothers ask Dong-ryong’s father to play "go-stop" with them; later on, Deok-sun’s father challenges Dong-ryong’s father to play against him.
Sun-woo’s mother gets a part-time job, while Jung-hwan’s parents decide to go on vacation to Japan.
Half-asleep, Jung-hwan goes to the bathroom; afterwards, by habit, he goes to his bedroom and lies on his bed. He’s stunned to see Deok-sun lying on the bed with him.
Episode 12: “Loving someone”
| Ep. 11 recap:
Sun-woo and Bo-ra kiss. Jung-hwan finds out that his mother can’t read English, while his father tells Jung-bong that his mother only graduated from grade school. With the mothers not available to babysit Jin-joo while she goes to her part-time job, Sun-woo’s mother is forced to ask Taek’s father to babysit Jin-joo. Later, as Sun-woo comes home with Taek and takes care of him, she realizes that the fortune teller’s prophecy of her having another child refers to Taek. |
As he goes out for a smoke,Taek stumbles upon Sun-woo and Bo-ra hugging each other. Later on, he surprises his friends with the swear words he has been learning.
Despite being warned by her friend about a flasher who frequents the restaurant where she has a date with the boys, Deok-sun goes there; Taek is there also, despite suffering through two consecutive, drawn out baduk matches. But the boys aren’t complete with Sun-woo missing. Later on, Jung-hwan leaves the restaurant, unable to deal with the sweet interactions between Taek and Deok-sun.
Sun-woo has found out about the cozy relationship between his mother and Taek’s father. He follows his mother and learns that she has been working in the bath house, scrubbing floors, on a part-time basis.
Episode 13: “Superman returns”
| Ep. 12 recap:
Jung-hwan becomes more jealous as Taek begins to show in public his affections for Deok-sun. Jung-bong has been waiting for a letter from Deok-sun’s friend, but he gets a chain letter instead. Sun-woo finds that his mother took on the part-time job to be able to buy him new shoes and clothes for college. |
After the commotion about a thief on their street, Sun-woo’s mother is teased by the other mothers about marrying Taek’s father. When Taek’s father asks her if she can accompany him for his medical checkup, she refuses.
The mothers become concerned when Deok-sun’s mother confides that she feels a lump on her chest. She and Deok-sun’s father later go to the hospital where the doctor tells her that a biopsy will reveal whether the lump is cancerous. Deok-sun’s father tells only Bo-ra about what’s happening.
Saturday comes, the day when Deok-sun’s parents will find out the biopsy results. But all the families are shocked when the TV news programs report that the airplane bound for Japan has crashed. Among the plane’s passengers is Taek.
Episode 14: “Don’t you worry”
| Ep. 13 recap:
Taek isn’t on the plane that crashed, having arrived in Japan on an earlier flight. The biopsy results turn up negative for Deok-sun’s mother. Sun-woo learns that even his sister Jin-joo likes Taek’s father. Taek wins the tournament in Japan and gives his trophy to Deok-sun. |
Deok-sun’s father gets drunk after meeting an old acquaintance, but he comes home with a long-awaited news for his family. Later on, he and Deok-sun’s mother have a heart-to-heart talk with Bo-ra.
It’s the start of a new school year; the boys get as their homeroom teacher someone they have been dreading, and Deok-sun becomes seatmates with the class president. During lunchtime, Deok-sun finds out that her friend Mi-ok is going out on a date with Jung-bong.
Sun-woo confides in Bo-ra his fears and reservations about the relationship between his mother and Taek’s father. On their way home, he gives her a special gift.
The friends celebrate Jung-hwan’s birthday in Taek’s room; Deok-sun has given Jung-hwan a pink dress shirt as a gift, but he doesn’t wear it to the party.
Deok-sun’s seatmate, the class president, suffers a seizure and has to be brought to the school clinic. Later on, at home, Jin-joo slips and falls, with the back of her head hitting the floor. She’s rushed to the hospital.
Deok-sun goes to see Jung-hwan before going to Taek’s house. But as she stands in front of Jung-hwan’s room, Jung-bong comes out of the room, wearing the pink dress shirt that was her birthday gift for Jung-hwan.
Episode 15: “Between love and friendship”
| Ep. 14 recap:
Deok-sun’s father finally becomes free of the huge debt that has hampered his family’s way of life. He tells Bo-ra that she can now afford to study for the bar exams, but Bo-ra hesitates because of Sun-woo. Things turn out alright for Jin-joo, and Sun-woo becomes at peace with his mother’s relationship with Taek’s father. Dong-ryong asks Deok-sun about how she really feels towards Jung-hwan. Taek tells Deok-sun that he’s in love with someone and will soon confess his love. The pink dress shirt that Jung-bong was wearing wasn’t Deok-sun’s gift to Jung-hwan; it was a gift from Mi-ok. |
Bo-ra envies the close relationship between her father and Deok-sun; on the other hand, Deok-sun worries about the upcoming parents-teachers conference in school.
Jung-hwan’s father breaks his back and is rushed to the hospital. But all the medical staff in the emergency room are swamped with victims of an accident, and he has to wait in line for treatment.
Taek asks Sun-woo what to do if he confesses his love for Deok-sun and she doesn’t believe him. But Sun-woo reassures him that Deok-sun will recognize his sincerity through his eyes.
Despite having been involved in a previous accident and being warned by his friends, Dong-ryong goes for another motorcycle ride with his classmate. But he and his classmate meet an accident and end up in the police station.
Before he leaves for another baduk tournament in China, Taek and his friends meet in his room for a party.
Bo-ra meets Sun-woo and tells him the real reason why she quit her job.
Episode 16: “Irony of life, Part 1”
| Ep. 15 recap:
The assistant chief of the hospital personally takes care of Jung-hwan’s father because he’s a baduk fan and Taek called him up, asking for help with Jung-hwan’s father. Because of his motorcycle accident and arrest, Dong-ryong finally gets to spend some time with his mother. During the conference, Deok-sun’s mother finds out that Deok-sun’s grades are not good enough for college. At the party, Taek realizes that Jung-hwan is in love with Deok-sun. Bo-ra tells Sun-woo that she will be studying for the bar exams. But Sun-woo interprets it as Bo-ra wanting to break up with him. |
The mothers think about joining the auditions for the TV show National Singing Contest, despite having failed several years ago. Dong-ryong, on the other hand, wants to join a dance contest.
Bo-ra’s parents announce to everyone that she will be taking the bar exams. They arrange for her to stay in a "gosiwon" as she prepares for the exams.
The boys skip their night class so they can watch the movie "Dirty Dancing" in Taek’s room; they also talk about what they want to do with their lives. Later, Taek asks Deok-sun to give Jung-hwan the wallet which he dropped in the room.
Before Taek leaves for his match, his father musters up his courage and tells him that he wants Sun-woo’s mother by his side for the rest of his life.
While Bo-ra drives off headed for the "gosiwon," the auditions for the TV show begin, with Dong-ryong and Jung-hwan’s mother competing against each other.
As the boys leave the library they’re surprised to see Deok-sun there. When Sun-woo asks her about her movie date, she says that Taek called her up and canceled their date.
Episode 17: “Irony of life, Part 2”
| Ep. 16 recap:
Dong-ryong and Jung-hwan’s mother fail to pass the auditions. But No-eul, Deok-sun’s brother, turns out to be a good singer and passes the audition. Taek sees in the wallet the picture of Jung-hwan and Deok-sun after the concert. After calling up Deok-sun to cancel their date, he takes several sleeping pills and passes out, face down, on his bed. |
Deok-sun mopes and frets over her canceled date with Taek, and things become worse when she meets an accident. Meanwhile, Jung-hwan’s father continues recuperating, and Dong-ryong suffers from hemorrhoids.
After their football game is interrupted, Taek and Sun-woo get the chance to talk about their parents’ relationship.
Bo-ra breaks up with Sun-woo.
Because of the projected record number of shooting stars that night and a TV feature about the new generation of Koreans, the friends begin thinking of what they want to do with their lives. Their parents reminisce about what their wishes were in their younger days; they also talk about their present wishes. But Deok-sun feels more pressured because she still doesn’t know what she wants to do with her life.
December 1989, a week before the friends’ senior year ends, Taek’s father finally makes his move for Sun-woo’s mother.
After the college entrance exams, Dong-ryong takes everyone to the college music festival.
October 1994 ... The friends, all adults now, come back to their neighborhood to celebrate Taek’s birthday.
Episode 18: “Goodbye first love”
| Ep. 17 recap:
Jung-hwan goes to military academy, while Sun-woo is accepted into medical school. In a minor miracle, Jung-bong qualifies for law school. Deok-sun and Dong-ryong, meanwhile, start reviewing again for the college entrance exams. October 1994 ... Sun-woo is a medical resident, Jung-hwan is a military officer, and Deok-sun is a flight attendant. |
Sun-woo and Bo-ra meet again; Deok-sun has just dumped her boyfriend; Taek goes out on blind dates; and Jung-hwan hasn’t given his ring from the military academy to any woman.
Bo-ra’s friend sets her up on a blind date with a genius third-year med student from Yonsei University. Meanwhile, Deok-sun turns down her friends’ invitation to watch "Forrest Gump" because she plans to go to a concert with her date.
Deok-sun gets a message on her pager that her date can’t come, but to avoid being teased about getting dumped, she pretends to her friends that she’s on the way to the concert. Later, as the boys, without Sun Woo, watch the movie, they see Deok-sun’s date with another girl.
Jung-hwan leaves the theater and rushes in his car to see Deok-sun at the concert.
Episode 19: “You did your best”
| Ep. 18 recap:
Taek reaches the concert venue before Jung-hwan does. As s favor to his friend in med school, Sun-woo goes to a blind date; the date turns out to be Bo-ra, who asks him if they still have another chance of renewing their romance. In front of their friends, except for Taek who’s got a baduk match, Jung-hwan confesses his love for Deok-sun. But he makes it to appear that he’s just teasing Deok-sun. |
1994 ...
Jung-hwan’s mother goes into menopause; meanwhile, the bank at which Deok-sun’s father works begins forcing its senior employees to retire.
Sun-woo gives Bo-ra three conditions that she must comply with if she wants to start their romance again; Bo-ra asks for some time to think about the third condition.
Before leaving for a baduk match in China, Taek visits Jung-hwan at his assigned military base; he finally reveals to Jung-hwan that he did look inside the wallet and saw Jung-hwan’s picture with Deok-sun.
Deok-sun meets Taek in China, and as usual, she has to make sure that he’s eating correctly. Because of a messed up group date, Deok-sun gets locked out of her hotel room. Taek offers to let her sleep in his room, and he can sleep on the couch.
Jung-hwan’s mother begins having extreme mood swings and kicks her husband out of the house. Jung-hwan calls up his brother Jung-bong and says that he will come home and work things out for their mother’s birthday.
All the friends and their families gather at Dong-ryong’s restaurant for the birthday party of Jung-hwan’s mother and for a special surprise prepared by Deok-sun and her siblings.
Episode 20, Finale (with spoilers): “Goodbye, my youth! Goodbye, Ssangmundong!”
| Ep. 19 recap:
Deok-sun confirms to Taek that they did kiss back in 1989 in Taek’s room. Jung-hwan turns the birthday party into a wedding for his parents, who didn’t have a formal wedding. Deok-sun and her siblings, on the other hand, give their father a special plaque of appreciation. Sun-woo and Bo-ra get back together again when Bo-ra agrees that their dating should lead to marriage. But, surprisingly, Sun-woo’s mother is against their relationship. |
The families start moving out of their neighborhood.
Two years later, Taek and Deok-sun get married.
During their interview, Deok-sun remembers going back to their old neighborhood ten years ago. She looks around the street, and, as she goes inside Taek’s house and into his room where she and her friends spent their childhood years together, she thinks:
When I went back in search of our neighborhood street, the street had aged so much. You could feel that the time had passed. I can’t go back to this street or to my youth. They are both the same.
Time will always flow. Everything will always pass by. Everything will age. That might be why youth is beautiful. It shines, blindingly bright, for just an instant. But, to it, you can never go back.
A time when many tears were shed. The time of my youth was like that as well.
1988. This is the end of our Ssangmundong story. Longing for that time and that street is not because I miss a younger version of myself. That’s the place of my father’s youth, my mother’s youth, of my friends’ youth. It’s the place that holds the youth of everything that I love.
In that landscape where we won’t be able to gather like that again, I regret being unable to say my final farewell. To the things that are already gone, to a time that has already passed, I want to say a belated farewell. Goodbye, my youth! Goodbye, Ssangmundong!
Historical / cultural backgrounders and other information
1. Videos that show life in South Korea during the time span of the drama
2. Half-basement apartments (“banjiha”) in South Korea
Deok-sun’s family lives in a “half-basement” apartment known as “banjiha,” with Jung-hwan and his more prosperous family living in the upper floor. Although Deok-sun’s family has a more upscale model, the banjiha actually looks like the dwelling that became known worldwide because of the Oscar-winning film “Parasite” by director Bong Joon-ho. Notice that in Ep. 3, Deok-sun’s brother is teased by his friends for living in a banjiha; Deok-sun herself mentions in Ep. 20 that she grew up in a banjiha.
The “banjiha” initially were bunkers that were required for houses starting in the early 1950s as a safety measure in case of an attack by North Korea. Because of the housing crisis in the 1980s, the South Korean government allowed the “banjiha” to be used as homes. As bunkers, the “banjiha” were typically five to seven steps below the street level. Students and lower class citizens typcally live in these dwellings.
For more information about the “banjiha,” please surf to “Life in a dingy basement apartment in Seoul | Video ” (Channel News Asia) and “Seoul to improve living conditions in semi-basement apartments depicted in Parasite” (Korea Herald).
3. The character “Taek” played by Park Bo-gum is a champion of “baduk” (aka “go”).
From Wikipedia: Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent. The game was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago and is believed to be the oldest board game continuously played to the present day. A 2016 survey by the International Go Federation’s 75 member nations found that there are over 46 million people worldwide who know how to play Go and over 20 million current players, the majority of whom live in East Asia.
| K-movies about 1980s Gwangju Uprising and pro-democracy movement in Korea |
From Wikipedia: Chun Doo-hwan, born 6 March 1931) is a former South Korean politician and army general who served as the President of South Korea from 1980 to 1988. From December 1979 to September 1980, he was the country’s de facto leader, ruling as an unelected military strongman with civilian president Choi Kyu-hah largely as a figurehead. Chun was sentenced to death in 1996 for his role in the Gwangju Massacre but was later pardoned by President Kim Young-sam, with the advice of then President-elect Kim Dae-jung, whom Chun’s administration had sentenced to death some 20 years earlier.
Spoiler-free synopses of K-movies about 1980 Gwangju Uprising: “A Taxi Driver” (2017) and “26 Years” (2012)
5. In Ep. 15, Bo-ra starts studying for the bar exams. But she’s an accounting or Math Education major in college; so, how could she take the bar exams?
From 1963 up to 2017, South Korea had a system for entering the legal profession called “sasi” which was a nationwide test open to anyone regardless of educational background. “Sasi” is a compound word with “sabeob” (judicial) and “siheom” (exam). Those who passed the “sasi” then underwent training in the Judicial Research and Training Institute for two years.
The “sasi” was abolished in 2017 and replaced with US-style bar exam for which only law school graduates could apply. South Korean universities started establishing law schools in 2007.
For more information about the “sasi,” please surf to Bar exam fades into history in Korea; Debate grows over fate of Korea’s traditional bar exam (The Korea Herald); and Korea’s last bar exam passes 55 people (Korea Times).
6. To prepare for the bar exams (“sasi”), Bo-ra lived in a “gosiwon,” which is a small room measuring about two meters long and one meter wide. The term “gosiwon” comes from “goshi” (state exams) and “won,” a lodging or institution. Today, the “gosiwon” also serves new college graduates, employees looking for cheap dwellings, and the homeless who pay for at least a month’s rent.
From Students aren’t the only ones cramming in gosiwon (2012, Korean JoongAng Daily): “Many find they can flush the toilet while lying in bed. While some may find that convenient, more say it’s so small they can hardly move around or find space for clothes.”
From Gosiwon, modern time refuge for house poor (The Korea Herald): ”Rooms are as tiny as 3.5 square meters and furnished with a desk, bookshelf and bed. If you are lucky, you get a small refrigerator in the room. But unless you pay for the luxury of a private shower or toilet, you will have to share one with up to 40 other tenants.”
From Gosiwon reflects changing housing culture (The Korea Herald): “The popularity of gosiwon as a living space has grown rapidly in the office-packed areas of Seoul. Now there are gositels, a combination of gosiwon and hotels.”
7. The article “Small Details Of Old Korea Seen Through K-Drama Reply 1988” (Creatrip) answers a lot of questions that this drama’s viewers usually ask:
Where Is Pangyo? | Why Do Mothers Wear White Cloth Strips On Their Heads? | What Is The Democratization Movement? | Is It Really The President That Jung-Bong Saw In The Temple? | The Significance Of The 1988 Seoul Olympics | Chinese Characters Everywhere | What Is The Meaning Of, "He Who Has Money Is Innocent. He Who Has No Money Is Guilty?" | Why Can’t People With The Same Surname Get Married? | Why Couldn’t They Apply For A Passport To Go Abroad?
Wes Anderson’s influence on the cinematography, colors, and characters of “Reply 1988”
A. In its article titled “The Power of Pop Culture in Reply 1988,” Vulture (the entertainment site of “New York” magazine) says: “The show’s rhythmic cuts, symmetrical frames, and earthy color palette recall Wes Anderson ...”
Wes Anderson is an American filmmaker whose “films – The Royal Tenenbaums, Moonrise Kingdom, and The Grand Budapest Hotel – appeared in BBC Culture’s 2016 poll of the greatest films since 2000.” (Wikipedia) Although I haven’t seen any Wes Anderson movie in its entirety, I’ve read a lot of articles and seen several videos about him from Studio Binder and other sources. For example, the video titled “7 Wes Anderson Style Shots in 3 minutes” enumerates his favorite techniques:
- symmetrical frame (draw a line down the middle of the frame, and you’ll see that the left and right halves are balanced)
- whip pan and tilt
- slow motion shot (with background music)
- tracking shot
- bird’s eye view shot
- map shots/the plan
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color palette (set design, costume design editing, etc).
B. Posted below are some comparisons between Wes Anderson’s style and some shots from “Reply 1988.”
B-1. Symmetrical shots from Wes Anderson
Notes: (1) The example immediately above illustrates what we call in photography as “Rule of Odds” which says that it’s easier to shoot an odd-numbered group than an even-numbered group. (2) There’s a reddit sub titled “Accidental Wes Anderson” where members post their symmetrical photos.
B-2. Bird’s eye view shots from Wes Anderson
Bird’s eye view shot from “Reply 1988”
Bird’s eye view shot with montage from “Reply 1988” (Taek and his father having dinner)
Bird’s eye view shot with montage from “Reply 1988” (Ep. 1, the friends crisscross each other as they give food to the other families))
B-3. Whip pan from “Reply 1988”
B-4. Tracking shots from “Reply 1988”
C. In the video titled “Color Theory and Wes Anderson’s Style -- Sad Characters in a Colorful World,” Studio Binder says that Anderson likes primary colors such as red, yellow, and other earth colors. The video also says that Anderson likes turning things upside down — he uses bright (“happy”) colors in sad scenes such as death, loss, or separation.
Here are some shots from “Reply 1988” that show these earth colors:
D. An article from “The Guardian” also says that some of Anderson’s major characters exhibit the qualities of a “man-child” (the dysfunctional grown man who’s really a juvenile). Hey, that perfectly describes Jung-hwan’s father with his endless jokes and comic antics, right? Except perhaps for Taek’s father, all other fathers in this drama can be described as a “man-child.”
Lessons in photography from “Reply 1988”
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| Symmetry |
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| Symmetry |
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| Low angle shot |
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| Foreground and background blur |
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| Bird’s eye view |
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| Out of focus foreground element as partial frame |
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| Symmetry |
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| Rule of Odds |
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| Natural frames |
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| Symmetry |
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| Background blur, compressed perspective |
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| Low angle shot |
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| Symmetry |
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| Symmetry |
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| Natural frames |
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| Earth colors |
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| Symmetry |
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| Low angle shot |
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| Linear perspective, low angle shot |
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| Foreground blur |