Do we really have a happy ending when movies cut the scene on the couples finally getting married? Of course not. The latest of TVN brings out the nightmares and rainbows after marriage in a sweet little package of Queen of Tears. It is my first introduction to Mr. Kim Soo Hyun who I’ve come to know is the highest paid Korean actor and I’m excited to see why. Of course, Uri Ji Won Shi, my favorite aegyo queen is who I’m familiar with and looking forward to watch and therefore the anticipation for this show was high for me.
Since the story begins after marriage, the opening scene is our visual couple walking down the aisle, and the viewers are quickly brought up to speed with the meet-cute and before-marriage dating period filled with a thousand kisses. Our Baek Hyunwoo, the poor knight with 35 cows, started caring for the seemingly careless and clueless Hong Haein pretty quickly at the office, even though Haein looks confused while having an insanely cold poker face, (because yes, only we viewers were able to decipher it since we already know), our dear Hyun woo was not having any clue that this is Haein, the owner of Queens, a chaebol. He only understands this when Haein lands in his hometown Yongdori with a private jet in Array.
I have to say that the compilation of them travelling around the world after their marriage and in their honeymoon period, being in love, bathing in the sunsets of France and Paris really made me want to register myself on a matrimony site for an insane second.
Well, when I was truly floating in the Hongbaek cloud of true love, a bucket full of ice-cold water was poured on me, as we jumped to the present time. Wake up guys, honeymoon’s over long ago. Three years later, the scenery has completely changed and the now legal director Hyunwoo has been driven to the verge of insanity and family pressure, and has finally decided to divorce Haein, hesitatingly. Why you may ask? let’s go down the list.
Number one, Hyunwoo works at Queen’s where Haein is her boss, a very stoic, a very cold boss who barely feels like the shell of a person he might call a wife.
Number two, everything for Hyunwoo has already been decided by the Hong family. When are they supposed to have a baby, what will be the gender of the baby, even what will be her name, everything. I’m thankful they hadn’t decided what day are they supposed to have sex.
Number three, Hyunwoo has become a cleaning puppet, sorting out the Hong family mess as they strut around without thinking or caring about the consequences or anyone else at all.
But the reason Hyunwoo is scared is because Hong family is a little *ahem *cutthroat. If people abandon us, that’s betrayal, they must be stabbed in the back. Pretty scary if you ask me.
When Hyunwoo finally asks Haein to make an appointment with him so that he can talk about these things, she doesn’t show up as well. And at this point, I as a viewer was livid. And to add the silver topping on this already hot fiery dish, Hyunwoo soon learns that the Queen’s will from Haein will not give him any inheritance.
And that Baek family are also some selfish people, except for mom maybe, who are basically relying on Hyunwoo being the Hong Son-in-law for their own fortunes and status in the village. Because of the stress, Hyunwoo has been driven to visit the psychologist for help. And this is where he decides to draw the line, come what may.
Beaten up from all fronts, Hyunwoo brings out the dreaded paper to Haein’s bedroom. But before he could utter a word, Haein drops the bombshell-She is about to die. And so, we are finally pushed into the mirage of Haein and find out her point of view. She has been suffering from cloud cytoma, an incurable disease, which has already started showing symptoms for Haein as she is having memory lapses, which is why she forgot Hyunwoo’s appointment. We see how she has been defending hyunwoo occasionally, (yes, just this one thing is not enough for me to buy her side),from her brother Soocheol, unbeknown to Hyunwoo.
From Haein’s point of view, things aren’t nearly as bad in their marriage. And when she accidentally sees Hyunwoo secretly searching for life expectancy for cloud cytoma patients, she actually feels motivated as her husband cares about her.
Sweetie, he was actually feeling very happy that you will pass away in three months and he will have a clean cut.
Now, I don’t know about being happy on someone’s death – no matter how fed up you are with the situation.;But other than that, I was on Hyunwoo’s side. And to me, Haein’s disease was not enough for me to forgive Hain’s cold and stoic behavior to Hyunwoo, which must have gone on for three years. Is some occasional berating to younger brother enough to bring the viewer on her side? Why didn’t she also stand up for him when her father was making absurd demands from them about having a baby at an exact time period and having already decided a baby’s name, which should solely be a couple’s decision?
And as if this not enough we also have a second pursuer for Haein’s love , her former class mate and someone who happens to be crucial to get Haein her new business deal Yoon Eun Sung. He seems a little too attentive and sweet on a married woman, much to Hyunwoo’s annoyance as well.
By the end of episode 2, they are going for a private hunting retreat on a private island and dear Eun Sung is also invited. thwe scene ends with swooping rescue of Hyunwoo for Haein from a wild boar, and though my heart fluttered for our hero, i’m still not sold on our heroine. Since it’s a rom-com, the director tried to package the ordeal with funny sound effects and comical editing. Some genuinely cute moments, like drunk Hyunwoo, were also incorporated. But at the end of the day, I was left wondering, is this truly supposed to be taken lightly? Am I ….. supposed to like her?
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