CherryBunny:
I find him frustrating, but overall he is very realistic. He does stick up Seol all the time. He does keep rejecting the other girl. The problem is, like most guys in dramas (and many irl, unfortunately) he doesn't reject strongly enough. In my experience, it happens a lot, so it is very realistic. It is just super frustrating to us females because we see a completely different picture. We see a very obvious and very dangerously persistant female moving in on our man. The guy will often times not even realize it until much later, and then think that being gentle and respectful is enough to take care if the situation. (It's not. :p) Truthfully, Joo Man isn't doing anything wrong but he isn't being firm enough, which is what makes him so frustrating.
I have to agree with you. As much as he annoyed me and I wanted to hate him, I just couldn't. I can't help but remember that his actions are very realistic. After all, they've been in a relationship for-what was it? 6 years?-a long time and its not unusual for the initial 'fire' or 'passion' of relationships to grow stale. Even though Seol Hee is still completely devoted to him, people are complicated and capable of change and oftentimes can grow too comfortable with their partners causing them to take advantage their 'safe' relationship. I think Joo Man wasn't pushing the intern away hard enough because he believed nothing could shake his relationship with Seol Hee, even a little straying on his part. He took advantage of her all-encompassing love for him and got caught up in the feelings of a new relationship. I found it interesting how every time he was attracted to the intern, he was reminded of different situations in which he was first attracted to Seol Hee. Therefore, I think he was drawn to the intern BECAUSE she reminded him of how it was when he and Seol Hee first started dating. Ultimately, it doesn't absolve him from his mistakes and it doesn't mean I support his actions at all, but if the writers wanted to create a realistic man and woman in a long-term relationship, I think they did well. It's almost like seeing the problems that a beloved main couple might face six years into their relationship.