Skip to main content

2.4 - Episode 4 of It's Okay to Not Be Okay

Jen is on vacation, so Sung Hee is filling in. In this episode, we recap and analyze episode 4 of It’s Okay to Not Be Okay, the hit K Drama on Netflix. The children’s story from this episode is Zombie Kid, the boy who couldn’t feel emotion and was only interested in eating. The assemblyman’s son causes havoc at his father’s political rally; he is chastised by his mom and his father tells the hospital director that his son will forever stay in psychiatric hospitals. Meun Young upsets Gang Tae with her talk of parents abandoning useless children, and children pushing away demented parents. But when her father tries to choke her, Gang Tae has a change of heart and goes to look for Meun Young in the rain. We have an important flashback of Meun Young as a young girl, her mom brushing her hair, and her mother lying face down in a pool of blood. 

We do a recap of the show, and then we dive deep into the episode. We discuss:

  • The song Hallelujah by Kim Feel

  • The Zombie Kid story and how we think this story is about a boy who ultimately was looking for warmth and love from his mom

  • How Gang Tae is going through a transformation; he’s showing more emotion

  • How Gang Tae and Meun Young are both childlike and childish in this episode

  • Gang Tae’s flashbacks of his mom prioritizing Sang Tae when the boys were younger

  • How Sang Tae is infatuated with Meun Young and he has another episode when Gang Tae yells at him

  • How this episode is about each character’s need to be seen

  • Our thoughts re: why Meun Young’s dad said “die” and “why are you still alive?” when he saw Meun Young

  • How we need to know more about Meun Young’s mother, the circumstances of her death, and her relationship with her daughter

  • Two characters who we think will become really important: Nurse Park and Ju-ri’s mom

  • The K Drama elements we see in this episode, namely:

    • Flowers

    • Food

    • Wrist grabs

    • Umbrellas

    • Lots of crying, especially by Gang Tae

  • How in Korean slang, telling someone “do you want to come over to my place for ramen” means “do you want to spend the night together.?”

  • Our favorite Meun Young outfits

  • Our favorites lines from the episode

  • The amazing cinematography in this episode

  • The wonderful animations in this show


References:


### 

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

Post a Comment

Thanks for your comment on this episode!

Popular posts from this blog

5.4 - Review of Episode 4 of Mr. Queen

Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 4 of Mr. Queen, the hit K Drama on Netflix starring Shin Hye-sun as Kim So-yong, Kim Jung-hyun as King Cheojong, Seol In-ah as Jo Hwa-jin, Na In-woo as Kim Byeong-in, and Choi Jin-hyuk as Jang Bong-hwan. We discuss: Then songs we played during the recap: Conspiracyby Kim Deuk-su  and Lost Memory by Howl.  Last week’s episode was so funny, while this episode is really dark and there are bad guys everywhere.  The Queen has figured out that it was the King who tried to kill her in the alleyway.  The King is still desperately trying to figure out what the Queen knows.  The many plots to frame someone for the Queen falling into the lake.  The Queen accuses the King of going after her because she’s weak; this makes him wonder if the Queen is plotting against him or if she really is someone different.  Jo Hwa-jin goes to Grand Dowager Queen to confess they she pushed the Queen into the lake When the King tries to defend Jo H...
2 comments
Read more

11.14 - Podcast Review of Episode 14 of When Life Gives You Tangerines

Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 14 of When Life Gives You Tangerines , the hit K Drama on Netflix starring IU as Oh Ae-sun and Park Bo-gum as Yang Gwan-sik as young adults, then Moon So-ri as Oh Ae-sun and Park Hae-joon as Yang Gwan-sik as older adults. We discuss: The songs featured during the recap: “A Rock that never erodes in the sea of my heart” and “Just be a good son, that’s all,” both by Park Seong-il, whose work captures the sad, wistful tone of the episode. Our guest Kim Soomin from Virginialicious shares her passion for Korean food and the stories behind her food tours. How Eun Myeong’s storyline takes center stage, highlighting the painful dynamics of favoritism, ambition, and parental regret. The cultural and historical context of buncheong stoneware, how Eun Myeong’s life was turned upside by a single buncheon statue. Pawnshops, especially during the IMF crisis in Korea. The heartbreaking reasons Eun Myeong started his business, and his desperate need to be...
20 comments
Read more

11.16 - Podcast Review of Episode 16 of When Life Gives You Tangerines

Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 16 of When Life Gives You Tangerines , the hit K Drama on Netflix starring IU as Oh Ae-sun, Park Bo-gum as Yang Gwan-sik, Moon So-ri as older Oh Ae-sun, and Park Hae-joon as older Yang Gwan-sik. We’ll also announce the show that we will recap and analyze in Season 12 of K Drama Chat. We discuss: The songs featured during the recap: Theme of Gwan-sik , Looking Back, It Was a Paradise , and It Was Just Sometimes Winter, Sometimes Spring , all by the incredible Park Seong Il. The devastating yet beautiful farewell between Ae-sun and Gwan-sik, as they reflect on their extraordinary life together. How Ae-sun’s poem, To the Heart That Leaves Me Behind , encapsulates her enduring love and strength, and how poetry weaves through the show as a symbol of love, regret, and hope. The emotional family moments, including Geum-myeong and Eun-myeong’s tearful goodbyes to their father, filled with regret, gratitude, and newfound understanding. How Ae-sun a...
20 comments
Read more