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[HanCinema's Drama Review] "The Woman who Married Three Times" Episode 22

I have to give this episode credit for one thing- I honestly can't remember the last time I saw a fictional pregnancy portrayed with such...ambivalency. Oh sure, there's countless stories where a woman gets pregnant unexpectedly, but these almost always turn into relatively cheerful upbeat narratives with inevitable happy endings. The prospect of abortion is rarely ever even mentioned, let alone seriously discussed.

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Well, "The Woman who Married Three Times" isn't exactly that much more amibitious when it comes to that last particular issue. Yes, Eun-soo is aggravated and worried- and for good reason. A flashback makes it all too clear what particular event was the one most likely to result in conception. But for all the tension Eun-soo is clearly going through, there's no sense of false optimism, no idealistic notion that this pregnancy is going to magically solve every problem in her life. This is harrowing stuff- even a visit with Hyeon-soo doesn't do much to revive the spirits.

The contrast between marriages and the kind of crises they can survive is an important one this episode. Chae Rin attempts to become a better stepmother to Seul-gi, but her plans are foiled because no one else in the family has any idea what Chae Rin is trying to do. A single meaningful conversation could make her life a lot easier- but unfortunately Chae Rin is trapped with a husband who doesn't particularly like her and in-laws who value Chae Rin more as an abstract concept than as a person.

Compare all these marital difficulties with the relationship Eun-soo's parents share- one that has genuine warmth, trust, and intimacy. The way this drama deliberately shows them in bed contrasted with the other two couples is a sharp one. The implication is clearly that this is the relationship all of the younger cast members want, yet they are all plagued by basic intimacy issues to such an extent that there's no apparent way for them to reach this level of trust.

So, as is typical, "The Woman who Married Three Times" gives us a lot of discouraging stuff to mull over. This is probably not the best drama to watch for someone in an emotionally difficult situation, since there really isn't a whole lot of positive stuff to focus on. The magic show was pretty good though. That guy seemed way too good to be doing a show for children. Too bad there's no magic tricks to solve a marriage that's on the edge of crisis mode.

Review by William Schwartz

"The Woman who Married Three Times" is directed by Son Jeong-hyeon and written by Kim Su-hyun and features Lee Ji-ah, Uhm Ji-won, Song Chang-eui and Ha Seok-jin.

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