Presentation
Korean Title: 알고있지만
Aired in: 2021 (10 episodes)
Channel: JTBC
Grade: 8/10
Actors: Song Kang, Han So Hee and Chae Jong Hyeop
For more…
Song Kang:
– Love Alarm 1&2
– Sweet Home
– Navillera
– When the Devil Calls Your Name
Han So Hee:
– The World of the Married
– 100 Days My Prince
– Abyss
– Money Flower
Chae Jong Hyeop:
– The Witch’s Diner
– Sisyphus: The Myth
– Stove League
Analysis
Synopsis
Yoo Na Bi is a university student majoring in arts. She doesn’t want to get romantically involved anymore, after she discovers her ex-boyfriend is unfaithful. Nevertheless, she meets Park Jae Eon and becomes immediately attracted to him. Though, he doesn’t seem interested in having a relationship at first, he progressively changes and develops feelings for Na Bi.
My Opinion (No Spoiler)
In overall, I would say that I appreciated Nevertheless. The realistic depictions of different types of relationships were really well led, which made the drama quite reliable. I personally preferred the second leads’ romantic involvements to the main leads’, as the story started to go in circles mid-drama. On top of that, the lack of communication and their respective inability to know what they want made the couple annoying at times.
Despite these little glitches in the narrative, the drama remains good and enjoyable, especially the finale! Plus, it is only 10-episode long, so if you wish to watch realistic portrayals of love, go ahead.
Analysis (Spoiler Alert)
Characters: Yoo Na Bi (Han So Hee) and Park Jae Eon (Song Kang) make quite the atypical pair! Their distinct views on relationships and love is probably the reason why they have so many troubles trying to connect. Despite that, they have a strong attraction to one another, and try to compromise as much as they can throughout the episodes, in order to find balance as a couple.
Let’s start with Na Bi! At the beginning of the drama, Na Bi is already in a relationship with another man. However, the latter seems to belittle her constantly, tries to control and decide everything and doesn’t let her express herself the way she should. On top of that, he has an affair with another woman and betrays Na Bi’s trust by exposing her in a vulnerable and sexual pose during an art exhibition. Indeed, he made a sculpture of Na Bi and most of the people present in the gallery recognize her. Wounded and hurt by that previous relationship, when she actually thought that it was love all along, Na Bi refuses to believe in love anymore. This belief is the starting point of the entire drama and one of the major pain points of her future relationship as well.
Apart from that new resolution, Na Bi’s character is actually more complex than it seems. On the outside, she appears to be this quiet and shy woman, kind and discreet; but she can also be quite stubborn and strong-headed, when she wants (especially with Park Jae Eon). Moreover, her will not to be swayed by love anymore makes it complicated for her to truly accept the fact that she is attracted to -and potentially in love with- Park Jae Eon. It’s like she voluntarily keeps a distance between them for fear of being hurt again. And we can understand that behavior, as Jae Eon is not the most trustworthy man when it comes to relationships.
Although Na Bi’s character is interesting, there were some details that really got on my nerves all along. First, she is contradiction incarnate! She says one thing and then its opposite view. For instance, she affirms she doesn’t want to see Jae Eon anymore at the end of the drama, but then she is upset becomes he doesn’t drive her home anymore, or doesn’t have little attentions for her. I mean, decide at some point. This lack of resolution is associated with her inability to make things clear, particularly with her school friend Yang Do Hyeok (Chae Jong Hyeop). She clearly knows that the latter has developed feelings for her, and she also understands that Park Jae Eon is still in the picture. Still, she keeps going back and forth between both men, blurring lines and making everyone confused. I could understand that she wasn’t aware of her feelings yet, but this doesn’t mean you can “use” others. Sincerely, I felt bad for Do Hyeok. He was definitely too good to be with Na Bi. She was clearly unworthy of his kindness and devotion. Remember, I told you Na Bi was a complex character, not that quiet, not that nice. Well, for that reason, I believe she needed someone as complicated as her. On that matter, Jae Eon is the best match possible, as Do Hyeok would seem quite dull and too clean.
Second, Na Bi tortures herself most of the time, overthinking every little part of her relationships, instead of following her guts and her heart. She processes everything with her head, never expressing what she truly feels. For instance, in the last episodes, Jae Eon comes to her house and asks her if she regrets their past relations. She says yes, when she clearly didn’t mean it. This accelerated the fallout between the leads.
Fortunately for Na Bi, she has found a man as complex as herself. Both characters actually share a lot of common points: their view on relationships and love are atypical. If Na Bi doesn’t believe in it anymore, Jae Eon just doesn’t believe in ordinary romantic relationships. At the beginning of the drama, Park Jae Eon is not willing to love, and I am even sure he doesn’t really know what that is. However, he grows throughout the drama and learns that his feelings for Na Bi are true and genuine. Moreover, just like Na Bi, Jae Eon is not very gifted in expressing his feelings. He keeps everything to himself, doesn’t communicate and he has a very solid poker face, making it almost impossible to know what’s going on in his head. I guess that’s why Na Bi is uncomfortable. She can’t read him and needs to be reassured in the relationship. The fact that she can’t decipher his thoughts thus lowers her trust in Jae Eon, which was already low by the way. Finally, Jae Eon is similar to Na Bi, because he reciprocates the attraction, or should I say the sexual tension between them. He shares Na Bi’s feelings, although he doesn’t demonstrate it well.
Park Jae Eon seems to be constantly impassive, carefree and involved in many relationships with several women. The fact that he flits about from one woman to another (just like his beloved butterflies do with flowers) makes him untrustworthy. Remember that Na Bi just got out of a difficult relationship, in which her ex was unfaithful. Hence the comprehensible trust issues. Jae Eon also tends to follow his desires and feelings, contrary to Na Bi. He is open and easy-going, hence his friendship (because there is nothing more between them) with Yoon Seol Ah (Lee Yeol Eum). The latter has always been interested in Jae Eon, but it has never been mutual. Fortunately at the end, she manages to get herself out of this one-sided crush and move on with her life.
For all of these reasons, I couldn’t think of a better match for Na Bi than Jae Eon. The reverse is also true. They just needed to communicate a little and clear the misunderstandings.
Atmosphere: I have to mention here the beautiful and more importantly sensual direction of the drama. The sexual relationships showed were sweet and tense, without ever revealing anything vulgar or out of place. Really beautiful aesthetics and visuals!
What are the themes tackled?
Well, many themes have been dealt with in that drama with mastery! Here there are:
University life: The realism of the drama is really praiseworthy! For once, I really had the impression that there were no stereotypes or clichés related to student life. Many plot twists or narratives seemed reliable such as meeting someone in a bar, having your period during a class, being cheated on, having sexual relationships… even the simple conversations at the restaurants seemed real. I am very glad that there is finally a drama that portrays student life as it is, without adding the usual drama of public declarations or popular guys dating nerdy women, or whatever it is that usually takes place in Dramaland. I have to say that this really was a huge asset for the drama, as it made it believable from beginning to end. For that, I have to mention the channel JTBC, which seems to never fail viewers when it comes to realistic illustrations of life.
Love under all its forms: Maybe others will disagree with me on this one, but I actually preferred and rooted more for second leads’ stories rather than the main leads’. Unfortunately for me, the others depicted relationships had too little presence on screen, and I would’ve loved to see more of them. Indeed, apart from the “yes-no-maybe relationship” embodied by Jae Eon and Na Bi, other students happened to have their own love struggles as well.
Three to four can be mentioned, if we count Jang Se Young (Seo Hye Won) and Seong Yun (Lee Tae Hee) who stand for the lovey-dovey long-term couple from beginning to end. As for the others, first there is Oh Bit Na (Yang Hye Ji) and Nam Kyu Hyun (Kim Min Gwi). These two have been best friends since day one, and it is obvious that their chemistry is strong. They think the same, trust each other, seem to share the same tastes and feelings for one another. However, these friends-turned-lovers have quite the bumpy relationship at first. Indeed, once again their thoughts on love and what a relationship should look like greatly differ. Bit Na doesn’t think that being exclusive is a thing, while Kyu Hyun is adamant about it. Bit Na mainly cares about sex, while Kyu Hyun wants to share other types of moments such as dates… I admire Kyu Hyun’s patience with Bit Na, because the lady is quite extravagant and childish sometimes, making it hard to reason with her. Yet, she eventually turns around, after she realizes what a life without Kyu Hyun would be like (they kind of break up in the middle because of this incompatibility). Bit Na then compromises and accepts being in a relationship, proving that this was the best thing that could happen to both best friends.
The second couple is yet another friends-turned-lovers one. Though it didn’t seem like their feelings were mutual, Yoon Sol (Lee Ho Jung) and Seo Ji Wan (Yoon Seo Ah) managed to overcome their fear of rejection and change and confessed their love to each other. Once again in that equation, it seems like there is a mature person (Sol or Kyu Hyun in the other relationship) and a more childish one (Ji Wan or Bit Na), in order to compensate personalities. Moreover, I think it is important to mention and applaud the fact that Sol and Ji Wan are a lesbian couple and I am so happy that more and more LGBTQ+ characters are being showed in dramas, without judgement or prejudice on top of that. Ji Wan and Sol were so cute together and definitely endgame!
Finally, the last couple (and surely my favorite) is that of An Gyeong Jun (Jeong Jae Kwang) and Min Young (Han Eu Ddeum), the seniors of the arts department. Though it started with Gyeong Jun helping Min Young with her problematic housing situation, their relationship quickly evolved to the point that they were a couple before even realizing it. Even Gyeong Jun’s mother understood it. They were sweet and cute together, supportive of each other and very attentive, especially Gyeong Jun. Clearly at some point, it was obvious that he didn’t want her to go, and I couldn’t help myself but thinking that he offers her a room in his apartment, because he already had feelings for her.
Anyway, these other couples enable the drama to show other types of romantic relationships and love, giving a broad overview of the couples that can exist in real life.
The meaning of the butterfly: I think you can describe Na Bi and Jae Eon’s relationship just by observing the use of butterflies in the drama. First, there is definitely a metaphorical meaning judging by Park Jae Eon’s tattoo and Na Bi’s name (meaning butterfly in Korean). Na Bi is a butterfly held captive in Jae Eon’s net, attracted to him like a butterfly is to light. At the same time, Jae Eon also has butterflies in his house, as pets that don’t go outside anymore. So, they are also held captive. But Park Jae Eon is not just a butterfly “owner” (of the pets or Na Bi), he is also a butterfly himself, hence the tattoo and the lighter (hum is it light to attract butterflies like Na Bi? Remember the scene in the alley with the cigarette…). That’s why he has such a carefree behavior. Indeed, he goes from one woman to another, like a butterfly would do with flowers. He is free like the wind, lives in the present and refuses to create bonds. No strings attached! This is actually one of the meaning of butterflies: freedom, like a Carpe Diem situation (“Seize the Day”) due to its ephemeral constitution. Butterflies also carry a certain mystery, just like Jae Eon is the total opposite of an open book!
However, butterflies also represent a transition, a change (from cocoon to insect). If we take a closer look at Jae Eon and Na Bi’s relationship, it is true that they are both transitioning from one condition (previous relationship, absence of one) to another (being a couple). This transition is even more visible that Na Bi frees herself and lets her feelings out in the open, when Jae Eon lets go of her. This moment is concomitant with Jae Eon freeing his pet butterflies.
Finally, butterflies represent hope, life, joy, exactly the final situation at the end, when Na Bi and Jae Eon start a new chapter of their lives together, as a couple.
Passion or comfort?: Na Bi’s choice between Jae Eon and Do Hyeok is actually a choice between passion (feelings) and comfort (reason). Like I said previously, Na Bi has troubles expressing her feelings and “feels with her head” rather than her heart. I believe that’s the reason why she is swayed by Do Hyeok and oscillates between both men. Indeed, when Jae Eon is passion, attraction, but also risk; Do Hyeok is like a solid pillar, a tree that provides shelter, comfort and stability. These are elements that Na Bi desperately thinks she needs in her future relationship, probably because she doesn’t trust herself and needs reassurance. Fortunately, the choice of heart prevails over that of reason!
Art as an expression of feelings: The metaphor of butterflies is clear in the drama, yet another metaphor runs through the episodes: that of arts (sculpture) as the mirror of feelings. During most of the drama, Na Bi struggles with her assignments. Even her teacher mentions her lack of emotions in her pieces. That’s because she shuts them out and refuses to live them out of fear. Thus, she can’t explore her full potential and her sculptures are so-so. That’s until she starts working with Jae Eon, who is the only one capable of making Na Bi let go. Through his gifts (the butterfly by Na Bi’s window and the bracelet), he brings Na Bi a sense of freedom, she lad locked away until now.
On top of that, when their relationship turns sour, the sculpture is destroyed by a falling fan, reducing it to pieces. Na Bi and Jae Eon have to start from scratch. This allows them to mend their relationship and realize they appreciate and miss each other. The final result couldn’t have been more metaphorical, as it shows a woman spreading her wings, like Na Bi (our butterfly) did thanks to Jae Eon’s wings (both the metallic ones for the sculpture and the metaphorical ones in their relationship).
Fate: The most pleasant surprise was probably the involvement of fate in all that! Yes, it is a bit cliché, but once again, it could have happened in real life. Indeed, Jae Eon saw Na Bi for the first time at the same exhibition, during which her boyfriend humiliated her. Jae Eon fell in love at first sight, but was unable to express his feelings. Then, he met her again in a bar (pure coincidence) and again at school. Finally, they reunite in the final scene, by night, when they both decide to see their sculpture at the exhibition. If that is not prove that they are meant to be, I don’t know what it is!
P.S.: Am I the only one, who thought their encounter in the bar was magical?
Once Upon a Drama 