Pinocchio Episode 1-4 Thoughts & Preview

 Love it, love it, looooooooove IT! It’s been a while but I’ve finally found a drama that makes me excited and giddy while watching and waiting for new episodes to air. I’ve been anticipating Pinocchio‘s (SBS) release since I absolutely adored the most recent drama collaboration by this writer-director team (I Hear Your Voice) and I’m happy to say that I wasn’t disappointed. I especially love the writer’s penchant for writing strong, likable, and spunky heroines and I’m glad Park Shin Hye manages to portray the character pretty darn perfectly.

I’m seriously a sucker for any show with a strong romantic storyline and it’s always a plus if there’s a cute, young love story embedded in it as well. There’s something so sweet about the idea of two people who’ve known each other for practically their whole lives who eventually fall in love. That’s one of the reasons why I liked Reply 1997 so much (random). Who else would know to exchange their egg yolks for your egg whites? And who else would know that you are hurt even when you say that you aren’t?

Annnywaaays, Park Shin Hye and Lee Jong Seok have adorable chemistry and I absolutely love their bickering relationship since these little arguments really show an unconscious level of comfort, intimacy and affection that they have for one another. Not that they’d be the first to admit it to each other at this stage of course.

I swoon at how protective Dal Po is of In Ha. He risks injury to stop her from getting hurt from a broken bike. He doesn’t show his smarts until she is threatened with 10 hits (and out of jealousy). He gives up going to college so that she can go. He pretends to believe her lies when she needs that pass so that she can have some space and time when she sees her mom for who she really is. He frantically looks for her and calls her name when he thinks she has given up. The list goes on and on.

Dal Po: Because I like you

Of course, Dal Po has some obstacles to overcome before he can openly confess his feelings for In Ha and be with her. There’s In Ha’s dad, although I believe he would accept Dal Po if given some time since I felt like dad was actually going to say something nice to Dal Po during his private conversation with him in episode 4 if Dal Po wasn’t so quick to say that he knows he’s not good enough and he’ll take care of his feelings for In Ha. You know, sometimes it might be a good idea to let the other person finish what they have to say since you really can’t know what they are thinking. And maybe, next time, also listen to everything that In Ha has to say about you before closing your door. Her response might surprise you. I don’t think grandpa will be a problem and would actually probably be really excited if In Ha and Dal Po become a couple because come on, Dal Po is a sweet, smart and handsome guy who’s so considerate and always puts his family first.

In Ha: Wait. A punk like Dal Po? Dad, I’m making this clear. Dal Po is not a kid you can take lightly or speak so easily of. It’s upsetting, but Dal Po’s smart enough to do the things I wasn’t able to do in 3 years in 1 month. There is no kid these days who has his mind set as straight as Dal Po. If it’s Dal Po, looks, personality and even brains, he’s the top, top, top dog that within the top 1% of highest ranking.

Oh yeah, and I love the Choi family dynamic. Odd but sweet. What a great reveal that grandpa actually knew Dal Po wasn’t his son a year after adopting him but kept on the facade to protect him? Awwwww.

Grandpa/Dad: At first, I pretended not to know because you were so pitiful and needed me. But now I need you. I pretended not to know because I wanted to keep you by my side.

Then there’s competition for In Ha’s heart in the form of the weird, yet adorable Beom-jo and his mom. They seriously crack me up with their relationship and how eager and excited mom was to hear that her son wanted to find Pinocchio. Definitely not like any other chaebol mother I’ve seen. It was adorable how he only had eyes for In Ha during the reporter interview and it doesn’t hurt that his interest will help light a fire under Dal Po’s ass.

I’m sad and angry about the tragedy that befell the Ki family. It’s always disappointing when reporters, who has the public’s trust to report the truth, twists the facts to sensationalize a news story without consideration for what the consequences might be. And the news story freaking involved firefighters who put their lives on the line everyday to save lives! To die a true hero only to have your name tarnished by unethical reporters is a shame. That doesn’t even take into consideration that children were affected which makes the distortion even more despicable. These reporters are to blame but the public is also not free from sin. Humans have a tendency to look for an explanation when tragedies occur so they are quick to believe these reports so they can have someone to blame. By having a scapegoat, it somehow makes the pain more bearable. It’s a shame since the innocent family that has been scapegoat-ed are made to suffer unspeakable levels of condemnation from people that don’t know the truth or who are not willing to find out the truth for themselves. Sad indeed. And now that dad’s remains have been found, who will apologize for the harm that they have caused the Ki family?Let’s hope the two remaining members of the Ki family will reunite, right this wrong and then finally be able to put this tragedy behind them to live happy lives.

Dal Po: People think that pinocchios only speak the truth and people think that reporters only relay the truth. Pinocchios and reporters should have known that people always believe their word and know that their words are more scary than other people’s words. They should have been careful, and careful. It’s all their fault! That thoughtlessness destroyed a family. And of course, they must be taken responsibility.

In Ha: You’re only saying this based off the pinocchios that you’ve seen. They won’t have been able to stay silent just because they might be wrong.

Dal Po: Looking at #444 (In Ha’s interview number), I now understand, why a person with the Pinocchio Syndrome cannot be a reporter. They ignore the fact that they could be wrong, and talk about what they want freely, not knowing how dangerous that is. Not knowing the price of his or her words, how dangerous that is, now I know.

During the debate portion of the interview, my heart was seriously breaking for Dal Po as he had to relive those horrendous moments again of dad’s name being dragged through the mud and those terrible accusations being thrown around. I completely understand where his anger was coming from but I didn’t think he should have lashed out at In Ha. She doesn’t know the truth so blaming her for mom’s misdeeds was a bit uncalled for. If she knew, there’s no doubt that she would have been on his side. They’re a team after all. So if In Ha gives him the silent treatment in the next episode, well, he deserved it.

Both In Ha and Dal Po better become reporters for YGN since it seems like it’s the only news station with a conscious. Mom better not use In Ha and her Pinocchio syndrome as a “marketing tool” for MSC, and In Ha (hopefully) won’t fall for it.

In Ha: Because it’s Dal Po…

I’m also happy at the pace of the story and how fast it is for In Ha to realize her feelings for Dal Po. She knows that Dal Po is always there for her and is (usually) always on her side, so when he yelled at her, of course she was sad. I love that her Pinocchio syndrome prevents her from lying to herself about her feelings. But In Ha, next time you are trying to convince a stranger that you don’t have feelings for Dal Po, let’s try to not include the fact that he’s your “uncle”. M’kay? People in real life don’t accept fauxcest as easily as us Kdrama viewers do.

[Single] Tiger JK (타이거JK) – 첫사랑 (Feat. 펀치 (Punch))[Pinocchio OST Part 1]

Episode 5 Preview