Very, very disappointing season. It's usually easier to put aside the very priviledged situation of most of the characters but here, it's impossible. I mean, telling the story of a teenager who fall pregnant and she has her parents, her baby's father and his mom to take care of her baby with her... Her parents can even afford to buy her a flat and cover her rent for an entire year (!!).
Moreover, it was actually starting in a very interesting way which makes the rest of the show even more disappointing. They had the opportunity to actually tell a much more interesting story of denial of pregnancy and giving birth anonymously but instead of course she decides to take the baby back..
Past the few first interesting episodes, the whole season feels like something written by "pro-life" conservatives...
They're using feminism totally wrongly too, by making her be a "super-mom", who can be a strong mom and a good student. This isn't very representative of what actually happens when you have a child as a teenager...And pushing women to be strong and capable in every way, without ever questionning why fathers are usually barely involved with their children's education isn't feminism.
There were some plot lines who had potential but were never actually explored properly (and how could they be, when the message of the season is obviously that you should keep your baby no matter what!).
The only positive thing was her relationship with a trans guy, where the drama was refreshingly not about his transidentity.
A really interesting show, that depict the conditions of (white) women a few centuries ago and the behaviour of (white) men toward them. I really enjoyed the pace and the mystery that surrounds the main character.
I think something that the show did well is show the behaviour of men. Except for Jeremiah, all the men are guilty of something and they all want something out of her/only see her like they want to. Even the doctor, who don't have any bad intentions toward Grace ends up hurting another woman. I also believe that Jamie said she was guilty during the trial because he saw she wasn't truly interested in him and was "avenging" himself and this is why she can't forgive him in the end. He also puts her in a very awful position after they're married as he forces her to recall traumatic events just... before having sex with her...
Anyway, the most logical conclusion for me is that she suffers of some kind of traumatic disorder and thinks of herself as Mary when she commits acts that might be reprehensible. Mary was such an important figure for her that Grace has lived her entire life wanting to accomplish Mary's dreams. She was the only person toward whom she could be truly open about things and losing her also meant going back to a situation of loneliness, without anyone to teach her about life and to listen to her. For me, the real trauma is not just the death of Mary but also the fact that she couldn't find another friend. I do wonder if Nancy's death is also linked to her not being the friend Grace thought she would be.
I watched it expecting the usual romance plot but the show also deal with a lot more subjects than this, though the romance is present and very sweet. I loved how Yoon-kang and Soo-in both had their own personalities and existed outside their relationship too. I loved how Soo-in seemed kind of quiet and the following type at first, only to appear much more strong willed as the episodes unfold.
I don't know if it's historically accurate or not but I was surprised that the political plot was much more complex than what expected : the characters aren't necessarily all bad or all nice and are all following their own ideals rather than being there just for the main character.
Even the "ennemies" had strong backstory that made me feel compassion toward them.
However, this drama could have been so much more if they had avoided some parts of the plot that made some episodes too dense. Sang-mi Nam, acting as Soo-in, also have a peculiar way of acting, that I was already familiar with but that can be uncomfortable to watch for some, especially in the first episodes.
Special mentions for Joon-gi Lee and Hye-bin Jeon who are both fantastic to watch!
