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Sunday, November 14, 2010

Endless Love (TW): Episode 2


Jing Hao and No-Q are back on the streets peddling goods. Jing Hao has apparently since given up the bootleg handbag selling as he is no longer pressed for money. No-Q tries to get Jing Hao to go home and nurse his wounds but Jing Hao is adamant in staying. Time is money after all. Rui En shows up to give him medication for his bruises (many hours later if we’re to assume that this is the same medication she picked up at school). While Jing Hao initially turns away her first aid supplies, she tells him to shut up
and applies the ointment for him in an amusing altercation. After realizing how intimate her actions are, she embarrassedly shoves the medication at him and runs off, slipping and falling in the process, as Jing Hao and No-Q watch on. Jing Hao gives a small smile as Rui En makes her way back to her car and berates herself for such an embarrassing feat. Meanwhile, No-Q teases Jing Hao about making a new “friend,” implying that there is more to their relationship than Jing Hao is willing to admit to.

In the meantime, Rui En makes her way to Jing Hao’s house with a fruit basket. She gets in easily as the front gate is once again secured by a spoon and chain. Mr. Liang (Jing Hao’s father) finds her and is initially suspicious, but quickly warms to her once she presents him with the fruit basket. Mr. Liang starts to complain of hunger like a child so Rui En, at a loss as to what to do, makes him dinner. The caretaker lady comes back to find the front gate open and runs alarmed into the house. Mr. Liang introduces Rui En as his friend while he happily continues eating. Back at Jing Hao’s street stall, he notes that the bruise ointment is working quite well.

We quickly jump back to Jing Hao’s house where Rui En is trying to explain to the caretaker that she is trying to make up for a wrong she did Jing Hao without telling him. The caretaker is delighted but mistakenly believes that Rui En has a crush on him. Rui En tries fervently to explain but loses track of what she was going to say when she sees the scorch marks on the walls. When Jing Hao gets home later that night, Mr. Liang tells him, half-asleep, that Zhi Shu came by today. Jing Hao is surprised but puts it off to his father’s illness.

The next morning, a bunch of students are gathered around a bulletin posting for teaching internships, Jing Hao amongst them. When he spots his name on the list, he smiles happily. In the meantime, Rui En shows up at Jing Hao’s house with a few construction workers to repaint the walls. She ends up taking Mr. Liang out for the day while the renovators work under the supervision of the caretaker, taking care of not only the walls but also redecorating.

When Jing Hao calls home to talk to his father after the construction workers leave, the caretaker, who is clearly very bad at lying, tries to fib he has yet to come back. However, they are almost immediately interrupted by Rui En as she announces their return. Jing Hao is confused as to why there is another person his house but the caretaker quickly claims that it is simply another neighbor come over to gossip. Rui En, it seems, does not want Jing Hao to know that she has been helping him out. The caretaker agrees to keep her secret since it is for a good cause. Mr. Liang confuses Rui En for Zhi Shu yet again, leading Rui En to ask the caretaker who that is. As it turns out, Mr. Liang calls all young ladies Zhi Shu. Zhi Shu, as we had learned earlier, is Jing Hao’s mother, and had passed away when he was very young. Later that day, Rui En is home and talking to a photo of her own mother, who had also passed away when she was a young girl.
Jing Hao returns home and is surprised to see it newly renovated. When he questions the caretaker, she explains that a friend of hers heard about his situation and wanted to help. Her friend, however, does not want to make himself/herself known so Jing Hao asks that the caretaker pass on his thanks. The caretaker, clearly uncomfortable in lying, hurries off before Jing Hao could ask any more questions. Jing Hao enters his father’s room to tell him that he finally landed an internship. He hopes that once he becomes a gym teacher, he will be able to offer a better life for his father.

The next day is the day of Rui En’s art gallery opening. Mrs. Li (Li Min Shuo’s mom) is there bright and early, oohing and aahing over Rui En’s paintings. Mrs. Li is like a teenage girl, fishing for details about Rui En’s father. Rui En puts up with it fairly well, showing no signs of discomfort, before Mrs. Li leaves for a lecture. Meanwhile, No-Q drags Jing Hao to a boutique to buy Jing Hao a suit in celebration of his internship. Jing Hao is uncomfortable and points out that he doesn’t need a suit as a gym teacher but No-Q pulls the friendship card and they begin to look around. No-Q selects an outfit but after hearing the price from the saleslady, Jing Hao gives him an out and they quickly leave. Later on in the streets, No-Q spots the red skirt Jing Hao ruined on a mannequin and can’t help but exclaim at the price. Jing Hao’s story finally comes out and No-Q is outraged on behalf of his friend. They bicker, No-Q wanting to call her and yell at her, Jing Hao just wanting to let the past be the past. Jing Hao spots a poster for Rui En’s art showing, reminding him that it starts that day. He is pulled out of his thoughts, however, when No-Q starts to tease him for having a crush on Rui En.

Later in the day, Jing Hao shows up at the art showing right before they are about to close for the day. Rui En is inside, waiting for Min Shuo to show up. She is ready to give up hope when Jing Hao walks in. The coordinator mistakes him for the person that Rui En is waiting for while the two stand in awkward silence. In her disappointment, Rui En comes across as somewhat belligerent as she asks him if he’s here to see the paintings, prompting Jing Hao to immediately turn away from her and stare intently at the closest painting. Rui En, amused by his actions, walks over and teasingly asks him what he thinks about her paintings. Jing Hao immediately answers “Not bad,” but when prompted to explain what he means by “Not bad,” he confesses that he doesn’t understand too much about art. Rui En teases him for being dishonest, leading to a discussion of their classmate status. It turns out that Jing Hao had noticed her taking pictures of him practicing taekwondo the other day. They have their first tentative heart-to-heart as Jing Hao explains that he had to save up for two years before starting college. Rui En replies that though she doesn’t have to worry about money, she, like many of her peers, has yet to find meaning in her life. When she grabs his hand, it is shown to the audience that their hands are linked by a red thread, but invisible to the characters themselves. Rui En guides him around the gallery, voicing her faith in the story of the red thread. The paintings all have a line of red running through them, showing just how much this story means to her.

As their tour comes to an end, Min Shuo shows up with a girl, causing Rui En to immediately let go of Jing Hao’s hand. Min Shuo mistakes Jing Hao for Rui En’s boyfriend. Though Rui En tries to deny it, Min Shuo doesn’t seem to believe her. Min Shuo also makes his relationship official with the girl he brings right there in the art gallery and invites both Rui En and Jing Hao to dinner.  Rui En voices her disappointment that Min Shuo is not even planning on looking at the paintings before leaving. Min Shuo brushes it off, promising to come back another day since his girlfriend is hungry.

At the restaurant, Min Shuo regales the table with inappropriate embarrassing stories about Rui En as a child, apparently unable to read the sullen expressions on Rui En and Jing Hao’s faces. When asked to clarify their relationship once again, Jing Hao claims to be her boyfriend while Rui En denies it. Jing Hao, unable to stand for the way that Min Shuo has been treating Rui En, tells Min Shuo off from his position as her “boyfriend.”

After dinner, Min Shuo leaves with his girlfriend. As soon as the couple has driven off, Rui En starts in on Jing Hao for pretending to be her boyfriend. Jing Hao explains that he didn’t want Min Shuo to treat her as a diversion. Rui En is quick to defend him but Jing Hao cuts her off. The reason she is so angry, according to Jing Hao, is because she believes that Min Shuo is the person she is connected to by a red string. When Rui En heard the story from her mother as a child, she had gone to visit Min Shuo at the hospital, tied a red string around their wrists, and made him promise to marry her when they grew up. When Rui En comes back to herself from the memories, Jing Hao is still in the middle of berating her for letting Min Shuo treat her poorly and for not confessing her feelings. After all, he claims, how is Min Shuo supposed to know her feelings for him if she doesn’t tell him? Rui En tries to get him to stop, but Jing Hao barrels on, derisively dismissing her naïve belief in story of the red thread.

Meanwhile, Min Shuo voices unhappiness in his car but is unsure of the reason. Rui En, on the other hand, wanders the streets tearfully lamenting the fact that she is the only one who remembers the promise that had been made when she was a child. At home, Jing Hao recalls how he met Rui En but begins to feel badly for how harsh he was that night.

The next day, Jing Hao returns home to see his father unraveling Rui En’s ruined skirt and tries to wrestle it form them. When the caretaker shows up, Jing Hao is still playfully trying to get the skirt from his father, wrapped in a tangle of red yarn. Rui En, on the other hand, is at the art gallery with her newspaper friend, talking about the showing and fantasizing about their future. She suddenly gets a call from Mr. Liang’s caretaker because Mr. Liang has been throwing a tantrum all day, asking to see Rui En and complaining of hunger.

We cut to Jing Hao, who is teaching at the taekwondo studio. Guan Zhang is on the phone with those in charge of the underground fighting, who want Jing Hao back again, even going as far as raising the compensation for participation. No-Q points out that if Jing Hao is discovered for participating in the fights, he would be disqualified from his internship. Guan Zhang understands but the underground fighting people are putting pressure on him as well. 

Next, we see that Rui En is at Jing Hao’s house, watching as Mr. Liang eats. She invites the caretaker to eat as well but the caretaker is too busy bemoaning the fact that all this good food is going to ruin Mr. Liang for her own cooking. Rui En apologizes but, with their argument still fresh in mind, she voices doubts about visiting again soon. At the same time, Jing Hao arrives outside the art gallery and calls Rui En to apologize for going too far the other night, wishing her the best with Min Shuo. While Rui En is on the phone, Mr. Liang extracts one of the posters for Rui En’s art showing from her bag, no doubt so Jing Hao can see it later and realize what is going on.

When Mr. Song (Rui En’s father) returns home later that night, Rui En is ready to greet him with a dramatic reading from the newspaper about his charity work. She proudly tells him about her successful attempts to make up for the wrong she did. Mr. Song, knowing his daughter, realizes that all this sucking up is because she needs money.

In the meantime, Jing Hao is once again peddling his wares on the streets but tonight, he is distracted by a couple admiring cute little stuffed owls. With a distracted smile on his face indicating that he isn’t completely there, Jing Hao starts to wonder if maybe he should engage in a relationship. Afte rall, life is kind of boring right now and a relationship should make things more interesting. When No-Q first hears these mutterings, he is surprised. Clearly, he must be mishearing things because Jing Hao has long since made it clear that relationships are out of the question until he became a teacher and had saved up money for a house. When No-Q realizes that Jing Hao is serious, he is quick to jump on board and help him find someone in his own outrageous manner.

The next morning on campus, Jing Hao comes across Rui En painting in the studio. He stares at her for a few moments until she sees him. He waves to her like a five year old, still half entranced, and promptly runs into the door as he turns to leave. When Rui En shows up at the gallery, she is happily surprised to see that both her father and Min Shuo are there.

They go for dinner, where Mr. Song brings up the fact that Min Shuo has once again gotten in trouble for bringing in a homeless child off the streets and treating him at the hospital. Mr. Song explains that he is planning on setting up a hospital for low income patients, and hopes to draw doctors like Min Shuo in. Using this opportunity, Mr. Song tries to get Min Shuo and Rui En engaged. Min Shuo is at a loss for words. When they are alone after Mr. Song leaves, Rui En tries to give Min Shuo an out, while trying and failing to hide a smile of happiness. Min Shuo shoots her down pretty quickly, not only stating that he thinks of her as a sister, but also that he doesn’t even consider her a woman. Rui En is devastated and orders a bottle of hard liquor after Min Shuo leaves.

Meanwhile, No-Q is hard at work trying to find his friend a match. Jing Hao, however, has no interest in any of them since he is clearly taken with Rui En. He is saved by the phone when Rui En drunk dials him, mistaking him for Min Shuo and tearfully confesses all her feelings. Anxious about her safety, Jing Hao asks for her location and runs off to find her, abandoning is vendor. On his way to find her, Jing Hao realizes that this is the first time that he has ever been this worried for someone other than his father. When he gets to where Rui En has passed out in front of the art gallery, he gathers her up in his arms.

After getting her in a cab, Jing Hao calls Min Shuo for her home address. In their conversation, Min Shuo lets it slip that Mr. Song tried to get the two of them engaged that night. It is clear that there is no lost love between Min Shuo and Jing Hao. Not wanting to take her home passed out, Jing Hao stops at a café nearby. When Rui En wakes up, Jing Hao explains what happens and begins to lecture her once again for liking someone like Li Min Shuo. Rui En, still somewhat drunk, mortified that Min Shuo learned of how she got drunk and is once again misinterpreting her relationship with Jing Hao, and still hurting, lashes out at Jing Hao, accusing him of falling for her just because she took pity on him. Jing Hao only watches numbly as Rui En teeters off, losing her balance and falling before continuing on her way.

Later that night, Jing Hao nurses his broken heart, drinking bottled beer on the curb, trying to laugh it off but unable to stop the tears. The next morning, he skips his milk deliveries and finds a fully stocked fridge. He tries to express his gratitude for the caretaker’s apparent generosity until he sees Rui En’s poster his father placed on the table. The secret out, the caretaker confesses everything. Recalling what Rui En had said the night before, Jing Hao angrily yells at the caretaker for lying to him.

Later in the evening, Rui En gets a call from the gallery, saying that someone wants to buy one of her paintings. She walks into the gallery elated, but is greeted with the sight of Jing Hao breathing raggedly. When she sees his face, it is once again bruised and scraped, clearly having participated in another underground fight. Jing Hao demands to buy a painting but Rui En is quick to dismiss him, saying that he doesn’t have the money. Realizing how harsh that sounds and the look on his face, she mutters an apology as Jing Hao’s anger mounts. Throwing the cash into the air, Jing Hao angrily demands a painting, any painting, of equivalent value, trying to hurt and humiliate her the same way she did him. He clearly hits his mark. Unwilling to take anymore degradation, she slaps him. Jing Hao, his body already beaten and exhausted from the fight earlier that night, collapses onto the floor.

My Comments:

This episode has a lot more light-hearted moments, which I enjoyed. The love story portion seems to be moving along fairly quickly, as the two main characters seem to be on the precipice of something more. Their relationship appears to be much more solid by the end of the next episode.

I am glad to see a bit more development for other characters, especially No-Q. While I didn’t pay much attention to him at first, this episode has made him a wonderful supporting character. Though he makes wonderful comic relief, he is also clearly capable of handling the more serious moments, showing himself to be a wonderful friend when he was trying to buy Jing Hao a suit and in his outrage on behalf of his friend.

Another relationship that I am quickly beginning to like is the dynamic between Rui En and Jing Hao’s father. She seems to have a deep affection for this naïve old man almost immediately. Surprisingly, I actually enjoy their dynamic more than the dynamic between father and son. Perhaps this is because most of the interactions between Jing Hao and his father are weighed down by guilt, regrets, and responsibility. Furthermore, most of their screen time together consists of Jing Hao talking to his sleeping father. Of course, this is more due to circumstance, since Jing Hao spends most of his time earning money. This is one of the reasons that I was so happy to see Jing Hao trying to wrestle the red skirt from his father.
As for the character of Min Shuo, I still can’t get a clear reading on him. The writers are clearly trying to make him into some sort of a hero, with the story of how he provided medical attention to a homeless child despite knowing how much trouble he would get into for it. But at the same time, he appears to be so terribly bad at reading people. For example, in the scene where he is having dinner with Jing Hao and Rui En, he just tells all these truly embarrassing stories of his times together with Rui En when they were children, completely failing to see or simply ignoring the unhappy expressions on Rui En and Jing Hao’s faces. He just comes across as so completely callous in his insensitivity.

Another character that I am rather unsure of is Rui En’s father. With his daughter, he plays the part of the doting father very well. However, he appears to be rather manipulative. The way that he steered the conversation during dinner with Min Shuo and Rui En clearly implied that the hospital he is planning on building is to lure Min Shuo in, to bribe him into marrying his daughter. Or maybe that’s just me being paranoid.

As for Rui En, while she has grown on me some, I cannot completely embrace her character just yet simply because she is so harsh on Jing Hao, who is clearly the most sympathetic character in the story. To me, she is still a spoiled little rich girl with a good heart that is often eclipsed by her rashness.  Of course, this gives her plenty of room for growth and I hope that the writers take advantage of it.

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