So Kang Pio spent the most beautiful years of his youth looking and yearning for a friend he had been with for only a few months in high school. He searched from 17 to 27, and then again from 27 to 30. Thank you, Kang Pio, for never giving up on him. He was ready to abandon the piano more than once, but never Jeongyo.
For those last three years, he kept looking, patiently but never resigned. He could have asked Vogel to find Jeongyo sooner. But I feel like this time he was not aggressively digging through every corner of the earth the way he had when Jeongyo was abducted, because he believed Jeongyo was living well somewhere, making music free of resentment and hatred, and free of him. If that was Jeongyo’s decision and wish, Pio would respect it and keep waiting without letting go. Only when he learned the truth about Jeongyo’s arm, he could not wait any longer.
Jeongyo’s Nemesis was written in tension; Pio’s version was written in love - a love letter meant only for Jeongyo.
On the other side, Jeongyo must have been searching the “Kang Pio” keyword and watching his old performance videos every day, just to ease the yearning. If not, how else would he have found the video? He received Pio's letter, understood what he was saying, and answered cosplaying a commentator but really was sending a hint, and telling Pio: now come find me.
Because of the adults’ greed, these two lost each other, lost the best years of their youth, and lost what mattered most to them. They crossed paths as children, missed each other at seventeen, and missed each other once more at twenty-seven. And still, they found their way back at thirty. This time nothing stands between them - only the two of them, their love, and music. It is bittersweet that they could have had this at seventeen, but they are here now, and nothing else matters.
#FourhandsTwoSonatas #포핸즈
#SongKang #송강
To those saying Pio never loved Jeongyo:
Pio didn’t do this for his mom. If he had stayed silent and absorbed whatever revenge Jeongyo threw at him, he would not have gone to jail, and his mother would have been safe too. He did it for Jeongyo, so Jeongyo could finally let go of his revenge and focus on making music. He said as much when they met in the investigation room. Why is that so hard to understand?
He threw his entire career and reputation away, confessing in front of a full audience that would later be broadcast on television, in newspapers, and across the internet. The whole world would know. I don’t know where he found that kind of courage, because I never could. He did it right after he had broken out of his mold, found the music he had been searching for his whole life, and delivered the most outstanding performance of his career. Imagine how bright the future ahead of him must have looked. He didn’t care. He was willing to rot in jail and give up the piano. This is the same person who once said that even if he had only one day left to live, he still couldn’t give up the piano. He did that for Jeongyo. He would have given up his life too, if Jeongyo had allowed it. If that is not the highest form of love, then I don’t know what is. People call Jeongyo entering a competition for Pio and offering his sheet music love, but refuse to call what Pio did love?
When Pio told Jeongyo, “This is the best I can do,” he really meant it. In his mind, he really had offered everything he had. He believed his mother’s actions were his fault, and Jeongyo’s words in episode 10 stayed with him: “It’s losers like you that destroy real genius.” He thought his very existence had harmed Jeongyo, and that the best thing he could do was disappear, so Jeongyo could forget him, stop wasting time on revenge, and put his genius talent toward music. What he didn’t know was that, to Jeongyo, he was music, even more important than music. Jeongyo never told him that. They had several months of a beautiful friendship at seventeen, when Pio would look at Jeongyo lovingly whenever they played the piano. Then came nine years apart, during which Pio searched for him everywhere, hallucinating, getting drunk, vomiting, crying, not eating, drinking and getting bedridden sick, you name it. When they finally met again, his most recent memories were of Jeongyo keeping his distance, refusing a hug, and saying, “You are nothing but a pathetic loser. You should never have pursued music in the first place. It’s losers like you that destroy real genius,” and “You are not worthy and don’t have the talent to play it.” From Pio’s side, it was clear how much Jeongyo hated and resented him, and how his existence could get in the way of Jeongyo’s music. He asked more than once whether Jeongyo was going to throw away the chance to make music just for revenge. To him, the past nine years must have felt like one-sided love. If he sacrificed himself, the person he loved could forget him and live well while making music.
He could just have turned himself in without finding every possible way to play Nemesis. He did it because he wanted to understand Jeongyo’s pain through the piece and to make Jeongyo’s music complete. He broke up with Jaein before turning himself in. He really did everything he could for the people he loved. To say he doesn't love anyone, do you even watch the drama?
Kang Pio will always be my favorite character - the most complex and layered one, the one I love most and the one who hurts my heart the most. Every action of his is consistent and, in its own way, relatable. Some people simply can’t understand him, probably because they are too busy seeking sympathy for their own favorite, or because the kind of love Pio showed is larger than anything they can imagine
#FourhandsTwoSonatas #포핸즈
#SongKang #송강