[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Don't Dare to Dream" Episode 19
By Lisa Espinosa | Published on
The incarnation of jealousy has manifested in Na-ri in this episode, bringing the title into fruition. Not only that, but jealousy shows up in different relationships all over the drama and makes for quite the heated hour. The wily emotion makes its rounds and spices up the episode for the better. The show has felt a little clunky as of late and it's finally picking up the pace.
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Part of what makes this show strong is that the Jeong-won and Hwa-sin fight over the same girl, but in the end they are friends first and foremost. The words they speak and the way they look/act towards each other say very different things. Verbally, they are competitive and threatening. In their actions, they are concerned over the other's well-being. It's a great conflict to set up that is much more real and much juicier than much of the first and second lead battles that we've seen on Korean television. The same holds true for the reporter mothers, Reporter Bang and Reporter Gye. They fuss and fight, but in the end they always lean on each other. The third person who rounds out the trio of jealousy, whether that be their daughter Ppalgang or the love interest Chef, remains the third person.
That said, it was immensely satisfying to see Na-ri on the other end of the relationship stick. She forced two friends to battle over her because of her indecision and now she gets to feel the same. Hwa-sin enjoyed her denial of her jealousy as well, which was beautifully portrayed by Cho Jung-seok. His acting renders his characters palpable to his audiences.
Although I find Hye-won a rather unimportant character in and of herself, she is important in that she forces Hwa-sin to think about his actions and his decisions. She is also the requisite love obstacle for Na-ri, which is much less interesting. It makes her a necessary evil.
With five episodes to go I imagine the main couple will face troubles, and Hwa-sin and Jeong-won will figure out how to navigate their relationship at this stage in life. I hope that the breast cancer element of the story doesn't disappear entirely, nor does Ppalgang's story. It was non-existent in this episode. It's a mistake to drop a plot thread so completely. Get it together show. Don't be jealousy of other shows' ratings and do your best.
Written by: Lisa Espinosa AKA Raine from 'Raine's Dichotomy'
"Don't Dare to Dream" is directed by Park Shin-woo, written by Seo Sook-hyang, and features Cho Jung-seok, Kong Hyo-jin, Go Kyung-pyo, Lee Mi-sook, and Park Ji-young.
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Journalist, drama lover, and foodie, Lisa enjoys exploring Korea, speaking the language, and soaking in all that dramaland has to offer. Her Korean husband laughs that she knows more than he ever will about dramas and K-pop. Lisa Espinosa can be contacted via lisa@hancinema.net.