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"We acted as if we had our dad forever".

"Dad’s one sided love just ended, and my one sided love just started"

—Yang Geum-yeong, When Life Gives You Tangerine.

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"Mom always said she had hard days but she never had lonely ones. In hindsight, my mother lived in paradise. My dad spent all his life patting us on our backs. He did his best for us with all the strength he had in him."

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Was watching this reel and then went on to talk to my friend about the masterpiece that is "when life gives you tangerines" and here are some snippets of the reel and the conversation:

You know....this is why I don't like when people are like "it was your parents' responsibility to feed you, to put a roof over your head, to provide you with everything" and honestly, was it?? Many, MANY parents choose to abandon their kids, or if not abandon, abuse or neglect them, very few actually do their best to raise their kids in an appropriate manner. This is also why I hate when I tell someone that "you know, my mom called me useless the other day" and they respond with "what a bitch, then she'll question why she's in an old age home" and NOOO, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND, how do I tell them that it's not her fault, how do I tell them that I still love her, how do I let them know that this one act does not make me hate her. She might say hurtful things sometimes but that will never diminish the sacrifices that she made to ensure that I get the best of what the world has to offer. This is why this show made me cry so much because I could totally understand geum myeong's perspective, her anger, her annoyance but also her guilt, her love. It was just so relatable. We see our parents as "mom" and "dad" but what about them as a person, what about their identity that is separate from parenthood, their childhood, their dreams, their struggles and just....this show hits so hard, it really forces you to think about these things, to look beyond yourself. I loved this show, I loved it so much.

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Another thing I love about WLGYT is, it’s not only about love but also respect and support in relationships. In a society where a woman’s role is dictated and as a daughter-in-law, you’re expected to maintain a household while still being looked down upon by your in-laws, the one person who should be by your side is your husband. And Gwan-Sik is the embodiment of that. “She came to live with me, not be your daughter-in-law,” and “Father is supposed to take your side,” in response to his mother and grandmother are powerful lines. When Geum-myeong tells Yeong-beom that they would end up resenting each other if they went through with the wedding is so so true because at the end of the day, the lack of support in standing up for your partner against someone or anyone who targets them and by extension, their family and those close to them is a problem. And I think this has been a gentle but also important reminder when it comes to deciding who you want to spend the rest of your life with. As someone who is in her mid-twenties and is reminded quite often that I should already be married, this show was what I needed to see.

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He knew he was leaving soon. So he moved the dishes. The ones on the top shelf. The ones Aesun could barely reach.

There was no big moment. No long talk. No goodbye speech. Just him thinking ahead. This is love in its quiet form.

He loved her in small ways.

Now he’s gone. But every time she opens that cabinet, she remembers. He made it easier for her.

Sometimes love is like that. It’s not always words. It’s not always big moves. Sometimes, it’s just a shelf. Just a little less struggle. Just a little more thought.

And maybe that’s all love ever is. Making life a little lighter for someone, even when you’re no longer there to carry it.

When Life Gives You Tangerines

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A mere fiction filled with realistic occurrences very well-written that it's impossible not to be evoked emotionally, or weigh up your own consciousness towards life.

Bigger and deeper than Gwansik and Aesun's life together, beyond the love they had for each other, it was the important people in their lives and the things they stood their grounds on that made living worth the fight. Composed of a child's approach, a parent's point of view, a lover's angle, and an individual's perspective, it did not fail to communicate its title. A top-notch demonstration that love is indeed choosing what & who are worth toiling yourself for, and that the fruit of life ultimately comes from how you see and value life itself.

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I've never cried to a finale like i have cried for the hour and a half of episode 16 of 'when life gives you tangerines'.

I'm in awe, I'm in awe of the writing, the emotions it's brought up in me.

The love in this show is unbelievable , I feel the love from everyone. It makes me weep for my parents.

I think one of the takeaways is karma. If you have good intentions, love your people, no matter if it takes 50 years and you have 10 wobbles and trips, it'll be okay in the end because of the love of the people around you.

I can't believe this show.

The scope... the breadth of the show, the whole lifetimes of people we see, the good the bad, I'm crying now after finishing the show.

What a beautiful story.

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yeah okay I have shed enough tears for an entire year. what a beautiful show <3

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park bogum said he really forgot the lines while reciting the nostalgia poem 😂 that makes that scene way funnier and 1000x better

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I finished vol. 1 of WLGYT and I absolutely adore the whole “we’re the women who came before us” commentary in the drama.

Yes, it’s reflected in Aesun, her mother, and her daughter, the way we can see the roots of their characters through generations.

But it also manifests in the Yang family. Every daughter-in-law brought into the family is mistreated by her mother-in-law. Gwansik’s mother was abused by her in-laws and then continued that same pattern with Aesun. Once bright and humorous, GS’s mom grows bitter and lashes out. She becomes maybe even harsher than the grandmother, since now she has no one on her side. Gwansik breaks the cycle by siding with Aesun and later taking her away from that house, all because he loves her.

It feels realistic, I’ve seen similar treatment of daughters-in-law in my family—when family members are divided into “our own” and “others”, and those who aren’t close enough or aren’t related by blood are “othered” and limited in some way. I personally hate it a lot. It’s nice to see this vicious cycle can be broken.

I’m curious to see what GS’s mom will be like in the next episodes, now that she’s driven her son away.

I also really enjoyed the scene with the stepdad’s mistress. She’s the most understanding of Aesun’s plight and doesn’t judge her—probably because she herself is an outcast in the society’s eyes. She offers Aesun comfort, gives her things that bring personal joy (tricycle, fancy clothes). And as far as I understood, she’s the one who pays for the 3-month rent when Aesun and Gwansik escape to try and live their own life (someone explained the translation of “Mo scholarship” on Reddit, I saw a screenshot).

Yes, she shunned Aesun before but she’s just a human with her own flaws. She even says she sees the stepdad’s kids as her own now—something I’m not sure Aesun’s own family (her grandma and uncle) are capable of doing with Aesun.

Every female character in the show is crafted with so much care and compassion. I’m really curious to see these characters evolve.

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it is right for geumyeong to end the relationship, to yearn for a relationship where she won’t have to walk on eggshells for the rest of her life.

on the other hand, it’s tragic that once she lets go, there’s no coming back for yeombeom. he can only watch as his greatest love slips away. but their ending is his fault—he never made an effort to create a livable environment for her, like gwanshik did for aesun every time.

geumyeong can stand up for herself, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t need protection. he failed to realize this.

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Haenyeo culture in Korea

Haeneyo are female divers from Jeju Island who harvest seafood from the ocean

Our blues (2022) | Welcome to samdal-ri (2023) | When life gives you tangerines (2025)

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I really love that the drama showed us the superficial similarities between Yeong-beom and Gwan-shik so that they could then highlight the crucial difference between them. Ae-sun was Gwan-shik’s priority. He always cared more about her comfort and happiness than anything else, and he demanded she be treated well. In every moment where it mattered and a choice needed to be made, he chose her without hesitation and he made sure his family knew this was his bottom line for them to stay in their lives.

And that’s where Yeong-beom failed. He was never strong enough to put Geum-myeong first. He let her be mistreated and humiliated by his mother for years. He was so avoidant about confronting the problem that he even let his mother belittle and terrorize Geum-myeong in front of her own parents. Despite a couple weak efforts on his part to address it, it was clear that this would never truly change. He wanted Geum-myeong to marry into this family that looked down on her and just put up with it for the rest of her life, and he was too selfish to realize what a horrible thing that is to ask of someone you claim to love. He is missing Gwan-shik’s steelheart, and without it he’s just a weak man who can’t protect her. I’m so relieved she found the strength to leave that relationship.