As their children leave the nest to build their lives and pursue love, our leads find themselves in an autumn season where they harvest the fruit of their labor and watch over their children as they make some crucial decisions.
While some stick together with their loved ones against all odds, some say their goodbyes and resolve to put the past behind them. But every ending marks a new beginning. And perhaps it is all for the better.
Bunny S. watches When Life Gives You Tangerines on Netflix
When Life Gives You Tangerines Episodes 9-12 Highlights
“The fall breeze turned into a strong wind. And the spring wind continually howled in my heart.”
Just like Geum-myeong took after her mother, Eun-myeong turns out to be a hopeless romantic like Gwan-sik, falling head over heels for a girl and getting caught hiding her in his room. But what Eun-myeong did wasn’t the issue; it was the identity of his girlfriend, none other than the former suitor’s daughter. The look on Gwan-sik’s face, realizing his son is a carbon copy of him, is priceless. Ironically, the lovebirds consider running away just like their predecessors after her brothers beat Eun-myeong up to force them apart.
As for Geum-myeong, after returning from Japan, she vows not to burden her family again, looking for a part-time job and renting out a small moldy room with cheap rent instead of one near her school. The landlord is strict about one thing, though. Geum-myeong can’t bring her boyfriend over. But guess who gets caught red-handed sneaking her boyfriend in? It is the landlord’s daughter.
Seeking help to hide her boyfriend, Park Chung-seob (cameo by Kim Seon-ho), Geum-myeong hides him in the closet. But Chung-seob gets caught, anyway. (What an epic first meeting!) Things happen and Chung-seob gets Geum-myeong a job as a ticket clerk at the theatre where he works as an artist painting movie posters. For now, Geum-myeong and Chung-seob have nothing going on and barely talk to each other. But their dynamics suggest they might fall for each other, especially since things aren’t going too well between them and their partners.
For starters, Yeong-beom offends Geum-myeong by criticizing the place where she lives and telling her to move to another neighborhood. Further complicating things is Yeong-beom’s overbearing mother, who openly looks down on Geum-myeong and doesn’t want her anywhere near her pride son’s place.
Dejected, Geum-myeong demands Yeong-beom choose a side. He can either be a dutiful son or a good husband. But Yeong-beom’s passive response, arguing no one can do that, gets Geum-myeong disappointed. You are wrong, Yeong-beom. A man did that before and prioritized his wife over everything his family included and his name is Yang Gwan-sik.
Meanwhile, Chung-seob’s dating life is rocky too. He is talented, yet his dreamy nature has him following his convictions over doing things that earn money. (Also, he refuses to shave his facial hair to impress his girlfriend’s family.) Thus, getting his girlfriend frustrated. Having had enough, the girlfriend dumps him and considers marrying the guy her father chose, especially after getting the wrong idea and assuming Chung-seob cheats on her with Geum-myeong.
“Her nerves would annoy me. But it was her nerves that saved me that day.”
Noticing a woman frequenting the theatre, Geum-myeong first mistakes her for a scalper reselling tickets. But the woman turns out to be Chung-seob’s mother, dropping by to see her son’s paintings. Treating her to a movie, Chung-seob’s mother is elated to watch her first movie and gifts Geum-myeong with study materials to show her gratitude. Taking a liking to Geum-myeong, Chung-seob’s mother tells him to take Geum-myeong home, using the heavy study materials as an excuse. But in fact, she is playing matchmaker.
Over some noodles, Geum-myeong urges Chung-seob to fight for his love to avoid having any regrets later. But on that exact day when he is visiting his girlfriend’s family, Geum-myeong passes out after inhaling carbon monoxide. Luckily, Ae-sun has the instinct to visit on that day and finds Geum-myeong before it is too late. But the problem is: the ambulance can’t drive there because of the high stairs. So, Chung-seob, in his dress suit, carries Geum-myeong on his back to where the ambulance is.
Outside the ER room, Ae-sun sits frantically. What if she couldn’t make it in time? After losing her youngest son, Ae-sun won’t be able to go on if something happens to Geum-myeong. Chung-seob tries to comfort her. And luckily, Geum-myeong pulls through. Then, the mood turns hilarious as Yeong-beom cries by Geum-myeong’s bedside, claiming he will die if something happens to her. Ae-sun is amazed that her daughter has found a boyfriend just like her father. But her excitement turns to anger after learning his mother disapproves of Geum-myeong.
After a time jump, we see Eun-myeong enlisting in the army instead of taking the college exam, since he doesn’t stand a chance. His girlfriend assures him she will wait for Eun-myeong, no matter how long it takes. But time will tell if those two will make it through or if the animosity between their families will tear them apart.
Another one joining the army is Chung-seob. It was a last-minute decision, and he departed without saying goodbye to Geum-myeong or the others at the theatre. Still, he left Geum-myeong a parting gift, a painting showcasing her pretty smile. We can tell Chung-seob has a crush on Geum-myeong. (He kept taking her home for years and carrying her books for her while also hoping she would go to grad school so he could continue to use the books as an excuse to see her.) But he couldn’t say it aloud and only hinted subtly at it and hid his feelings in his painting.
“If I stay with you, my parents’ hearts will break.”
Some time passes and Geum-myeong and Yeong-beom are now engaged and preparing for marriage. Yeong-beom’s mother’s unfondness of Geum-myeong is nothing new. But she takes it a step too far at the families’ meeting, arriving one hour late, and treating Geum-myeong’s parents as nothing.
Neither Gwan-sik nor Ae-sun is pleased with how this witch treats their precious daughter, repeatedly denouncing Geum-myeong for not being good at doing chores and remarking she will have a hard time teaching her daughter-in-law how to manage a household. But they try to hold back to the best of their ability for their daughter’s sake.
When Ae-sun points out that Geum-myeong has a job. The haughty witch counters that Geum-myeong will resign as if Geum-myeong doesn’t have a say in it. For someone as hot-tempered as Geum-myeong, she takes all this humiliation meekly for Yeong-beom. But he doesn’t even have the decency to help her or make a sound to his mother. That guy is nothing like Gwan-sik, who never left Ae-sun to fight a battle alone.
Fed up, Ae-sun asserts her daughter is precious to her so she couldn’t bring herself to teach her how to do chores and raised her sheltered. Not that this nasty woman will understand Ae-sun’s heart. After sending off her parents, Geum-myeong pleads with Yeong-beom’s mother to treat her gently as being mean to her will break her parents’ hearts. But it falls on deaf ears.
While shopping for wedding hanboks, Yeong-beom’s mother continues with her condescending comments. And though she wants to flip the table and teach that witch a lesson, Ae-sun puts up with everything for her daughter’s sake. This is until Yeong-beom’s mother outright tells Ae-sun to convince Geum-myeong to break up with Yeong-beom, as the two families aren’t a good match and she doesn’t want this marriage.
That is the breaking point for Ae-sun, who gets crushed and throws a fit at Geum-myeong about hating the idea of having her daughter marry into that toxic household. Likewise, when that witch crosses the line and berates Geum-myeong’s parents to her face, she breaks off the engagement then and there. Geum-myeong isn’t embarrassed by her family, but by how she tolerated all this crap.
After years of dating, this is how Geum-myeong and Yeong-beom’s story concluded. It took them a year after that to process the breakup with Yeong-beom clinging and pleading with Geum-myeong to take him back and her jabbing at him. Then, it all ended one night (on Yeong-beom’s birthday) with the two of them sharing one last hug and saying their goodbyes. It surely hurt when Geum-myeong decided to break up with Yeong-beom. But that pain might fade with time, yet the humiliation and the embarrassment will remain for life and suffocate her.
What hurts more is the fact that Geum-myeong and Yeong-beom could have been happy together yet it was Yeong-beom’s toxic mother (who deemed her son’s life as hers and selfishly set out to mold it to her liking) who brought on their separation. Yeong-beom isn’t innocent either, since he remained passive and couldn’t protect his woman or stand up to his mother and reclaim his life. He wanted to marry Geum-myeong and also please his mother, hoping things would work out. But it didn’t.
Unlike Gwan-sik, Yeong-beom wasn’t brave to fight for his love and ended up marrying the woman his mother chose and living miserably for the rest of his life. It is telling that the nasty witch was the only one smiling at the wedding. But then again, life is fair. So she gets her payback when she grows old and lonely without anyone caring for her.
“It is like boxing up your precious memories and burying them underneath.”
To nurse her broken heart, Geum-myeong visits her family’s home for the first time in a while. Gwan-sik and Ae-sun are ecstatic to have her there, treating her like a princess and feeding her with all sorts of good food. Taking her on a trip to watch the sunrise, Gwan-sik showers Geum-myeong with his unconditional love and helps her find some light amidst the darkness. And after a heart-to-heart with Ae-sun, Geum-myeong is all healed and settles to move on.
Our leads feel the void their daughter left behind just as they get home after seeing her off. But in her place, Eun-myeong returns with a mini “pleasant” surprise. He is discharged from the army and his girlfriend is pregnant. History repeats itself and our leads are about to become grandparents, but they aren’t exactly that pleased by this news. As we end this week, a freshly discharged Chung-seob gets off a bus just as Geum-myeong gets on the same bus. Spotting her, Chung-seob chases after the bus with all his might, and it is here that we end this week.
— Netflix Korea｜넷플릭스 코리아 (@NetflixKR) March 17, 2025
When Life Gives You Tangerines Episodes 9-12 Musings
Watching Geum-myeong and Yeong-beom madly in love, we rooted for them and wished for their happily ever after. The thought of them breaking up got us worried. But love alone isn’t enough. One has to protect their partner and ensure they are treated with respect. Yeong-beom couldn’t do that and left his mother to maltreat Geum-myeong before him. By the time he tried to become independent and move out of his parents’ house, it was too late and Geum-myeong had enough of being humiliated and wanted to call it quits.
It is all up in the air. Yet Chung-seob might be a better match for Geum-myeong as he was nice to Geum-myeong since the first time they met. He was the quiet type who didn’t meddle in others’ affairs. But when Yeong-beom hurt Geum-myeong with his remarks about her new place, Chung-seob told him not to make a fuss in someone else’s neighborhood. He also cracked a smile because of Geum-myeong, which he never does. Moreover, Chung-seob’s mother is an affable person who likes Geum-myeong and won’t give Geum-myeong a hard time.
Another theme we appreciated this week is how a mother’s instinct is always right. From Ae-sun’s mother sensing her daughter is in danger and saving her in the past to Ae-sun feeling something isn’t right and dropping by to see Geum-myeong and saving her in the nick of time. Also, the montage of Gwan-sik and Ae-sun protecting Geum-myeong throughout the years was heart-melting. Gwan-sik didn’t care about his broken arm, but the scars on his daughter’s body. The way our leads loved their children unconditionally can’t be described in words.
As we approach the drama’s ending, our leads bid farewell to some of their family members, who died and left them behind. From Gwan-sik’s grandmother and father to Ae-sun’s grandmother and one of her aunts. The theme of loss prevailed this week as well. If the opening sequence is any indication, Gwan-sik might be the first to pass away, leaving Ae-sun behind. Death is an integral part of life. So, we won’t complain much or call it a sad ending. Instead, let’s hope the story delivers on its last volume and continues to charm us in the same way it did.
Photos and Videos: Netflix Korea
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