The poignant love between mother and daughter portrayed by Oh Na-ra and Kim Si-eun delivered deep emotion.
On the 3rd (Fri) broadcast of tvN's Hwa-jae's Scarlet (directed by Yoo Si-yeon / written by Kang Seul / planned by Studio Dragon / produced by Blitzway Production), a love deeper than that of biological mother and daughter was depicted between the woman Hwa-jae (played by Oh Na-ra), who buried the word "mom" in her heart, and the woman Scarlet (played by Kim Si-eun), who waited for "mom" to call her name.
Hwa-jae ran a noodle shop at the market and longed obsessively for her daughter Jin-ah, whom she had sent to the United States for adoption right after birth 20 years earlier. One day, a mysterious blonde girl, Scarlet, showed up at Hwa-jae's noodle shop. Watching Scarlet eat only noodles without saying a word, Hwa-jae found herself concerned enough to unknowingly remove noodle strands stuck on Scarlet's nose, and Scarlet felt a warm heart like noodles from Hwa-jae's touch. Later, Scarlet returned to the noodle shop and, hugging Hwa-jae tightly, revealed through tears that she was Hwa-jae's lost daughter, saying, "Mom. It's me. I'm your daughter," in an emotional mother-daughter reunion. Scarlet, who came to Hwa-jae like a gift, then went on a date with Hwa-jae to the park Hwa-jae had wanted to visit, and helped at Hwa-jae's noodle shop, as the two spent each day cherishing precious time they did not want to part with.
But a dark shadow fell on the two who had every reason to be happy. Police investigating a mysterious murder began to pursue Scarlet. At the same time, Scarlet's story, which had been shrouded in mystery, was revealed, heightening immersion. Scarlet was actually the biological daughter of Rena (played by Seo Young-hee), a former jazz singer at a U.S. military club. But Rena denied Scarlet's existence, and Scarlet, who had considered Ella (played by Lee Jae-gyun) as her mother, tried to run away to meet a mother who would love her; however, she was discovered by the pimp Thornton and Rena, increasing the tension. In desperation, Scarlet killed Thornton to protect the dying Ella and fled with all her strength, then came to Hwa-jae desperately seeking a mother's love.
Even after being captured by the police, Scarlet worried that Hwa-jae might resent her, saying, "Mom knows everything, right? That I'm not your biological daughter." But Hwa-jae knew Scarlet was not her biological daughter from a letter Scarlet had secretly hidden behind a photo album that read, "I'm sorry. I wanted to be my mom's daughter," and regardless of that, Hwa-jae was already Scarlet's mother. As if things couldn't get worse, Scarlet was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Hwa-jae eventually went to find Scarlet's biological mother, Rena, for Scarlet's blood transfusion, but what returned was Rena's cold sneer. Rena assaulted her with words, saying, "I tried everything to make you die in my womb; you should have died then. Do you know why she's called Scarlet? I don't even know. Suddenly that became her name. Why would I name someone who shouldn't have been born! She's a child without a name. She doesn't even exist in this world."
Enraged, Hwa-jae cried out, "Don't you dare call yourself her mother. If you want to die, do it alone. Why ruin Scarlet's life too? Then give her to me from the start. I feel so sorry for our Scarlet," sobbing in a way that pierced viewers' hearts. Meanwhile, Rena's monologue, crying that "I never had a mother," allowed viewers to glimpse, through Hwa-jae, what the existence of a mother meant to someone who had never experienced motherhood.
As Scarlet's condition worsened, she pleaded, "I want to live. I want to live with mom. Mom. Can I love you?" offering her love to Hwa-jae, and the two, who desperately wished for the parent-child love that might be obvious to others, comforted each other's wounds with their mutual presence, bringing tears to viewers' eyes. Especially in the epilogue, like Hwa-jae's line "If the dye from the balsam flower on your nails remains until the first snow, love will come true," a miracle on the day of the first snow occurs as Hwa-jae and Scarlet spend an ordinary, happy time together like a certain mother and daughter, moving viewers deeply.
Hwa-jae's Scarlet, which showed a mother-daughter love deeper than blood, drew attention with a showcase of acting from Oh Na-ra and Kim Si-eun to Seo Young-hee and Lee Jae-gyun. Oh Na-ra led the drama's immersion to its peak with her aching maternal affection toward Scarlet, the daughter she bore in her heart. In the hospital scene where she clutches the collapsed Scarlet and cries out "Baby," she conveyed a poignant and wistful emotional explosion alongside her aching feelings for Scarlet, stirring viewers' emotions.
Kim Si-eun perfectly expressed Scarlet's wounded inner world, which needed a mother's love, through delicate emotional lines, teary eyes and expressions. Seo Young-hee played a tragic woman who did not even know what maternal instinct was, shouldering the drama's tension, and Lee Jae-gyun as Ella showed through deep emotional acting that even if you are not loved you can give love, and even if you cannot bear a child you can have passionate maternal love, as a mother-like figure who made Scarlet dream and taught her about love.
Meanwhile, tvN X TVING short drama curation - Hwa-jae's Scarlet ended on the 3rd (Fri), telling the story of Hwa-jae's daughter, who had to be sent for adoption to the United States right after birth, returning one day as the blonde Scarlet.
[Photo] tvN
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