Ultra Fan Guide to Ayase Haruka
I know, I know.... there are around 100 articles about this topic. So I'll spare you the long introduction. It is just important to know that this isn't a funny article. The topics and deeper thoughts are rather sad. My apologies to fans of Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese and Lakorn content. In this article, there will only be Kdrama examples.
CAUTION: Minor spoilers for 49 Days, Bridal Mask, Pinocchio, Heartless City and major Spoiler School 2013 ahead.
Tears (49 Days)
In 49 Days, Ji Hyun is about to die but if she is able to collect three tears cried because of pure sadness, she can wake up and live further. She thinks that it will be an easy task. But when the Grim Reaper explains the different reasons for tears, Ji Hyun realizes what that means to her.
The Grim Reaper shows her people at a funeral. All tears are of a different color based on the reason why they are crying. A woman cries because she is angry that the deceased left her alone. Another person cries because he doesn't know how to handle all the debt left by the deceased. Another woman sheds tears for a totally different reason — she just uses the occasion to cry her eyes out.
I came to think about why people cry. My (personal) conclusion is people usually cry for very selfish reasons. They cry because the situation influences them and their life. They tear up because they will miss a person, lose the support that they used to rely on, because an unfair situation makes them feel angry, they feel guilty etc. And it is OK. It is actually very hard to be just sad. Usually feelings are mixed and not totally clear.
Don't be too sure that you know yourself (Bridal Mask)
Bridal Mask takes place during the Japanese occupation in the 1930th. The Korean population is suffering because they are treated as second class citizens without any rights. Lee Kang To decides to sympathize with the Japanese and try to fit into their system. A lot of Koreans hate him for his behavior and view him as a sell out.
It is easy to judge and say “I would never do something like this”. And it is even easier to blame a person in a drama for spilling secrets after being tortured for hours. But in Bridal Mask, there is a character who is very sure about staying strong. But when the moment comes, this character is glad someone else told every secret before he / she could.
When the situation comes, it's completely different from what we imagine it to be like. Of course Bridal Mask is a very extreme example but it is possible to transfer this into any kind of situation that we face daily. From afar, it is so easy to say things like, “I would never cheat on my partner” or “I would never feel ashamed of my parents” or “I would never hit someone”. However, you will know who you are when you face extreme situations. Most of us are to complacent when it comes to self-assessment.
Forgiveness cannot be one-sided (School 2013)
In School 2013, two boys meet again after a long time. One of them behaves strangely, is it out of guilt or fear? The other guy keeps the distance and blocks every attempt to get in touch.
One of them committed a mistake in the past and felt too guilty to apologize. He was not strong enough to face the one he betrayed and left him alone. When they meet again, he tries to get close to his former friend, but he knows what he did is unforgivable... in the end, when they finally talk about everything, it turned out that the “victim” wasn't deeply hurt because of the betrayal. Instead, he is angry and hurt because of the friend abandoning him afterwards.
So forgiveness is nothing a person can just give to someone. This person has to be strong enough to face their own guilt and endure the shame he / she feels. On the other hand, if somebody does something wrong, it is even more unfair if the person just hides without even asking for forgiveness. If the victim doesn't forgive his betrayers, obviously there is nothing more one can do. However, a victim should always get the chance to decide.
Power of media (Pinocchio)
In Pinocchio, the Choi Dal Po's father goes missing and is accused of being a murderer while he is still missing. The media publishes breaking reports full of falsehoods and half-truths causing the family to get chased out by their neighbors and former friends.
The people just believe what the reporters say without asking questions. As a result, the family is harassed and other horrible things happen to them. Who do people think they are, to be allowed to punish anyone so whimsically? Do we live in the woods like monkeys? Is there no law or basic understanding of conscience?
Just blindly trusting the media is soooo incredibly dangerous! Depending on the purpose of the report, they nearly never tell the whole truth. And even if they report the truth, the facts are always continuing to change based on the progress of the investigation. So even if it is an honest report full of trustworthy facts, it is dangerous to draw conclusions and attack somebody. And what the heck did the family, especially the children, do wrong to deserve such harassment?
People are too easy to influence. We should all be careful with our judgments and actions!
Not every one had a choice (Heartless City)
In Heartless City, the Doctor's Son seems to be a cold blooded drug dealer, killer and gangster. During the drama, the watcher dives into his world and also learns about his past.
He was born the son of a prostitute. For him, sex is something a man buys from women. He doesn't know it could be an act of love. Before he really knew what he did, he got used to smuggling drugs. He was surrounded by criminals who were nice to him unlike the "normal" people who looked down on him and blame him for being born into this world.
So how can a person who is born into this world escape from there? Society will not let him enter their world even if he is just a child. The only place he can turn to is the world marked by criminals. So he loses from the beginning and there is no way out. Of course, I can't defend the actions of people like this but I can definitely understand it. Perhaps their lives are more pitiful than hateful. If society changes how it behaves towards, at least the children in this sort of situation, more of them would at least have a chance at a normal life.
