In total today, I have 8, 367 photos of Bridal Mask on my USB device, not including the GIFs, and most of them are all about Jin Se Yeon and the KangDan couple. Now that tells you something, huh?
Three years ago, people have greatly loved the KangDan couple, which was probably the most messed up OTP of the 2012, because of the things that had happened between Kang To and Mok Dan in the drama, including the people around them.
Off cam, I have always shipped Jin Se Yeon and Joo Won so hard that even after 3 years, I still ship them, and I want nothing more than a reunion for these two.
Their love story in Bridal Mask ended tragically and right now, I still feel sore about it. I have never really let them go. They were like a real, vivid part of me that was impossible to forget or ignore.
I was checking out their photos on my USB again today, ’cause I’ve got nothing else to do, and just seeing them made me feel nostalgic. I suddenly missed them so much. Good thing is that while Bridal Mask was still airing in 2012, a ton of KangDan edited photos were made as a tribute to them. And of course, I saved them all. 🙂
Here, let me share a few thoughts I have about the characters, Kang To and Mok Dan.
>> Joo Won as Lee Kang To (AKA Young Master Lee Young, Sato Hirsohi, Bridal Mask [Gasksital]):
(1.) Joo Won didn’t just play Kang To and Bridal Mask; he had played a character in the drama that was not just layered but phenomenal as well. He made the character of Bridal Mask unforgettable, epic, hateful, lovable and relatable all at once. He was a superb actor that was able to bring Kang To to life. Honestly, I can’t picture anyone else playing Kang To, because Joo Won strongly owned Kang To.
(2. )Kang To, in the first episodes, was a hateful but pitiful character. It’s true he had done so many horrible things and had betrayed his home country by becoming a police for the Imperial of Japan, torturing his countrymen at will, but you can’t fully hate him because it was showed that Kang To only did all those things to provide for his family, specially for his older brother, whom he thought was sick in the head badly in need of medical care. Of course, that didn’t excuse his savagery but you can still see glimpses of his aching, good side.
(3.) I actually loved the fact that he was the one who unintentionally killed his own older brother and who tortured Mok Dan and then discovered afterwards that she was actually his first love, not because I’m a sadist but because his growth as a person resulting to that grave mistakes was very interesting to watch. The way he fought with his inner demons and finally being able to stand for what is right just stuck with me like nails on the wall.
>> Jin Se Yeon as Oh Mok Dan (AKA Boon Yi, Esther)
(1.) Jin Se Yeon was a relatively new actress, although she had already been the female lead of the drama “My daughter, Flower” from SBS, and she was not the greatest actress around, but she gave Mok Dan justice by delivering just the right emotions. Others didn’t like her, but I loved her, personally because her character was a lively woman of strong principles and beliefs. Se Yeon was able to endear Mok Dan so much to me that because of Bridal Mask, she had become my sole favorite Korean celebrity to date.
(2.) Mok Dan was a strong-willed woman, unbending and relentless. Like Kang To, she’s ready to fight for what she believes in. She could be impulsive and reckless, but she’s quick witted. What I love most about her is that whatever she says, she means it. She has suffered so much physical and emotional pain, but I love the fact that she still managed to view the good in her situations. Maybe that’s why people found her character “boring,” because she seemed one-dimensional when in fact, she was multi-faceted. I can say that she knows how to handle her pain well, and let herself be an encouragement to others despite having her own share of troubles.
(3.) As a woman, I adored Mok Dan’s wardrobe. In terms of fashion, we were alike a lot. I often search the web for her compilation of costumes, but found only few. *sigh* 😀
♥ This is all for now. But rest assured, this isn’t the last of my KangDan posts. :)) ♥
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