As if My Lovely Liar wasn’t the most adorable show that left us feeling satisfied, Twinkling Watermelon comes swooping in to take its time slot as well as its place in our hearts. Okay, yes, only two episodes have aired, but with such a classic concept, there’s no way this show isn’t going to be one of our favorites of the year. Also boasting an impeccable cast of younglings who are garnering more popularity by the day, everyone’s going to have their eyes on this drama. Twinkling Watermelon follows Eun-Gyeol, a CODA, who finds a love for music when he’s desperately looking for help. After a terrible incident, Eun-Gyeol finds himself confused between music and his family. What will Eun-Gyeol choose, or will his choice be made for him?
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens In Episode 1?
Eun-Gyeol is part of a family of four where he’s the only hearing member. He has an older brother, whom he loves dearly, and two very loving parents. At age 12, Eun-Gyeol and his family moved to a new neighborhood, where they lived in a basement apartment. The landlady realizes that even though the family is “disabled,” the young boy is a genius, so she asks her son of the same age to get along with him. Instead, Byong-Ho decides he wants to be a bully and chooses to harass young Eun-Gyeol. Byong-Ho even tried to get Eun-Gyeol to cheat on an exam, but Eun-Gyeol didn’t do it. Feeling disheartened, Eun-Gyeol ends up in front of the Viva music store. There, he finds an Eric Clapton song that makes him deeply emotional. The store is owned by an old man who the whole town is afraid of. Rumor has it that the old man went to prison and is on parole, but there’s no truth to any of it. The old man finds Eun-Gyeol’s understanding of music fascinating and brings him into the store. Slowly, the old man makes Eun-Gyeol understand how to tolerate people like Byong-Ho and, at the same time, teaches him how to play the guitar.
Eun-Gyeol is talented musically, and according to the old man, he “speaks through music.” One fine day, the old man tells Eun-Gyeol that if he’s able to finish up an incomplete song that he shares with him, he’ll gift Eun-Gyeol the electric guitar he’s been eyeing since he started learning. Overjoyed, Eun-Gyeol works really hard and does the assignment. Eun-Ho becomes sick with a fever, and because the parents have to work, Eun-Gyeol is given the responsibility to look after him. Thinking he’ll be gone just for a bit, Eun-Gyeol leaves his sleeping brother alone and goes to Viva. Nobody opens the doors there, so Eun-Gyeol returns home disappointed, but to his shock, there’s a fire in the house, and his dad is inside looking for him. Fortunately, Eun-Ho was saved by the fire department in time. Byong-Ho started the fire because he kicked a cigarette butt into their house out of spite for Eun-Gyeol. The landlady never admitted to her own mistake, though, and her son got out of it scot-free.
On a snowy day, when the family is out playing, Eun-Ho is in danger of some construction rods falling on him. Before disaster could strike, Eun-Gyeol was able to get his father to save his brother. Afterwards, he asked his dad, if there was ever a disaster and his dad had to save one of the three other family members, who would he save? Eun-Gyeol’s dad tells him that it would be Eun-Gyeol himself because he knows that he would be able to help his father. Eun-Gyeol is the family’s lifeline. This thought never left Eun-Gyeol’s mind after the fire accident. On the day of the fire, the old man had passed away, too. After Eun-Gyeol’s father and brother recovered, the family had to leave the neighborhood. He decides to say goodbye one last time to his old friend, only to find out he’s dead, and that was the end of his affection for music. Not really. Eighteen years old now, Eun-Gyeol still secretly plays music, and for the past 6 years, his family hasn’t found out about it. He’s also really smart and is working hard to become a doctor to make his dad proud. Occasionally, he does some busking, wearing a mask so his identity isn’t revealed.
In an ice cream shop somewhere, Lee Chan falls head over heels for a cello player named Se-Kyung. Lee Chan lives with his grandmother, who can’t keep up with him.
What Happens In Episode 2?
While busking, Eun-Gyeol gets asked by an up-and-coming indie band called “Spine9” to audition to be their guitarist. He declines at first, but somehow, he feels drawn to try it out. He had certain conditions before joining the band, though. He’s in his final year of school, so his studies come before music, but more importantly, he has a difficult family situation, so his family comes before anything else. In the meanwhile, Lee Chan is trying his hardest to impress Se-Kyung. He even gets caught by her, sneaking into a prestigious event to see her play the cello. She reminds him that they’re from different backgrounds and he should stop wasting his time, but it doesn’t seem to affect him at all. Instead, with the advice of an older friend who plays guitar, he decides to join a band to impress her. At school, an art student named Chung-A gets tripped up by some students, and she accidentally splashes a bucket of dirty water on Se-Kyung. Surprisingly, Se-Kyung is rather nice about it, but Chung-A, who is used to being bullied, doesn’t appreciate her “kindness.” She gives her a t-shirt to wear, and it happens to be band merchandise. Outside, Lee Chan is waiting amidst other boys who are all in love with Se-Kyung. He happens to be wearing the same t-shirt, meaning that they’re meant to be together.
On the other hand, a production company is impressed by Eun-Gyeol’s performance with Spine9. They decide to audition them to go on tour as the opening act for the famous singer Yoon Dong-Jin. But Eun-Gyeol gets a call that his father has been in an accident. He rushes to find the former landlady with his dad. She claims that she hit his warehouse and hurt Eun-Gyeol’s dad. But Eun-Gyeol’s dad insists that the driver was a young man and not the mother. Just like when he was younger, Byong-Ho’s mother is trying hard to protect him. Eun-Gyeol’s dad is tired of sitting back and wants to fight her this time around. Six years ago, he lost the opportunity to fight, but now he won’t sit quietly. Even if he can’t speak with words, he isn’t stupid.
Eun-Gyeol makes the decision to leave the band because he’s reminded that the unfortunate incident of six years ago is a fixation for his family rather than a piece of their forgotten past. Still, the band offers him one last chance and tells him they will wait for him. When Eun-Gyeol goes to cram school, his mom is waiting there for him. She knows something is up with him, but she doesn’t want an explanation until he chooses to tell her himself. Feeling the pressure, Eun-Gyeol gets away from his mother and finds the spot where Viva music used to be. He cries in front of the new house built there, and the woman who lives there now asks him to come inside, recognizing him. She’s the daughter of the old man, and he’s left the special guitar to Eun-Gyeol. This encourages him to make a decision for himself for once, and he goes back to the band with his new guitar.
Is Eun-Gyeol’s Dad Supportive of His Choice?
Byong-Ho’s mother sees Eun-Gyeol with his band members. The lead singer is sick, so he’s taking some drugs to get better. Misunderstanding the situation, she judges the high schooler for illegal drinking and drug abuse. Eun-Gyeol’s dad, in the meantime, finds a dashcam to prove that it was Byong-Ho driving the car and submits it to the police for proof.
With Byong-Ho in trouble, his mother is furious and tells Eun-Gyeol’s father that his son is going to clubs, drinking alcohol, and doing drugs when his dad is going around telling everyone he’s going to be a doctor. Eun-Gyeol’s dad shows up at the club during the Spine9 performance. Eun-Gyeol finally has a chance to explain to his dad that he wants to pursue music, his passion. His dad is completely against the idea. Eun-Gyeol’s finally able to speak up, so he ends up saying some really harsh things, like how he’s tired of being an interpreter for his family and that even if he had tried to explain to his father that he wanted to do music, he wouldn’t have been able to hear it, so there was no point in doing so.
Reminded of his dad’s answer to the harsh question he asked him all those years ago, Eun-Gyeol tries to break the guitar given to him by the old man. At that time, he’s distracted by the moon, and when he looks to the other side, there’s an instrument store that looks just like the Viva Music store. Feeling nostalgic, Eun-Gyeol goes inside and meets the store owner. The old man thinks Eun-Gyeol’s there to sell his guitar. Eun-Gyeol goes ahead and sells his guitar to him. The owner tells him that he’ll give him half pay now and the rest of the pay later. Somehow, Eun-Gyeol agrees and doesn’t find it strange that the man is giving him cash for it. When Eun-Gyeol gets out of the store, it’s daytime, and he’s in 1995. Eun-Gyeol is mistaken for a random guy by Lee Chan. When Lee Chan introduces himself as the frontman of the band “First Love Memory Manipulators,” Lee Chan, Eun-Gyeol, is shocked to realize it’s his dad and he has a voice.
Yoon Dong-Jin, in the future, also mentions the same band name, “First Love Memory Manipulators.” How did Lee Chan become deaf and mute? Is Se-Kyung the old man’s daughter? Eun-Gyeol is probably in the past, so he can see his father’s love for music with his own eyes. There’s a lot to find out, and we can’t wait for the new episode of Twinkling Watermelon.
