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1.02 - Episode 1 of Hotel Del Luna


Episode 1 of Hotel Del Luna introduces the main characters, Jang Man Wol and Koo Chan Sung, as well as some of the hotel staff, mainly the bellman, the guest manager, and the bartender. The episode flips back and forth between the past and the present, and between the main storyline and the side stories. 

We do a short recap of the show, and then we dive deep into the episode. We talk about our first impressions of the show and what we loved about the first episode. We discuss:
  • What we know about Jang Man Wol
  • What we know about Koo Chan Sung
  • What we know about the hotel
  • How 3 of 14 K Drama Elements show up in this episode, mainly: flowers, alcohol and food.
We close with a few words about Korean names, including how you address someone formally, informally, and our new Korean nicknames.

Here are some of the websites we referenced:

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K Drama Chat is a weekly podcast where we take one Korean (K) Drama each season and and recap and analyze each episode. K Drama Chat is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.

Comments

  1. TimTTMay 25, 2022 at 7:42 PM

    Hi there! For me, the first episode of Hotel Del Luna really hooked me into the story and world that the show presents. The idea of hotel that appears at night and serves the dead is fascinating. Jang Man-Wol is a fascinating character, seeing that she has something really horrible that she did to make her punishment being the owner of the hotel and never truly being dead or alive. IU's performance is so awe-inspiring that every time she is on-screen, you can't take your eyes off her. I love the contrast between her and Gu Chang Sung's personalities and how Chang Sung is perhaps the perfect male human. He is kind and caring, but not afraid to call out on Man-Wol's behavior or actions.

    The thing I found interesting immediately was the beginning of the show was basically a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. The show loosely follows this story to a certain extent.

    Man-Wol's scene shooting a ghost bullet to the corrupt mayor was the show stealing moment. Everything from the music, cinematography, and acting was well done.

    Can I also say that this show has the best background music I have every heard! The music matches perfectly with the tone and style of the show. In a way it kind of reminds me of the music from the Harry Potter films.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sung-HeeSeptember 13, 2025 at 5:55 PM

      I will have to make sure Joanna sees this comment! Just like you she is so attuned to the music of these shows!

      Delete

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