In the finale of ‘Romance is a Bonus Book,‘ Cha Eun-ho and Kang Dan-yi’s (Lee Na young) happy ending was expected, and Ji Seo-joon’s (Wi Ha joon) reunion with his father took an unexpected turn. The Gyeoro Publishing company ties up all the loose ends in the last two episodes, which was expected and hence, quite underwhelming. The happy ending is sweet, of course, but having waited an entire week to see how things would pan out, this was a letdown. Eun-ho (Lee Jong Suk) and Dan-yi remain the cutest couple despite this, and they work together on author Kang Byeong-jun’s situation.
Last weekend, we saw Dan-yi find out the truth about the author Byeong-jun’s sickness and how Eun-ho has been taking care of him for the past six years. In the finale, we learn that the celebrated author has Alzheimer’s, because of which he begins to forget key details of his life.
In a moment of lucidity, he asks Eun-ho to promise he will not let the world know of his sickness, but instead let him retire as an author. Dan-yi, who realizes that Eun-ho has been through a lot by himself when she was busy taking care of family, is unable to process it all, but Eun-ho convinces her he was fine as it was a responsibility that he took upon himself.
Gyeoro also receives a manuscript from an author whose contact details are fake. The writing style is shockingly familiar to author Byeong-jun and Song Hae-rin (Jung Yoo-jin) takes a look at the manuscript. She realizes that there is something familiar about the manuscript and in a moment of epiphany, realises it is the work of Seo-joon.
Eun-ho and Dan-yi along with Hae-rin then figure out that Seo-joon is the son of author Byeong-jun as they put together his journal. Eun-ho takes the manuscript along with all of the author’s journals to Seo-joon who understands that his father did not abandon him, but just didn’t remember him in his life because of the disease.
The only unexpected thing about the finale was Seo-joon’s reunion with his father, which comes a little too late. Byeong-jun passes away before he can meet his son. Seo-joon helps Eun-ho in organizing the final rites for his father and the two also receive a letter from Byeong-jun, which he writes during his rare lucid moments and tells Eun-ho that he doesn’t want to hide his true self from his readers and wants Eun-ho to write the chronology including his disease.
The show ends with a new edition of Byeong-jun’s book, ‘April 23,’ getting released, which includes the truth about his condition. The employees of Gyeoro move past the sadness and continue to make books with dedication. Dan-yi’s first book as a full-time marketing employee gets a nod from the founders and Eun-ho and Dan-yi also come out as a couple to their colleagues.
This is the cutest moment of the series, especially when Eun-ho holds on to Dan-yi despite her blushing from all the attention. When the show comes to end, we realise that ‘Romance is a Bonus Book’ was more about the love of making books, of stories that change lives, of poetry that moves hearts, than anything else. So, despite the ending being underwhelming, we have to agree, “The moon is beautiful” as Eun-ho said to Dan yi instead of confessing his love.
The writer’s note at the end of the show, which translates to “I will become a name you think of when things get difficult. I will become like a tree, who becomes rooted in your hearts and whose branches and leaves grow out and flourish,” brings ‘Romance is a Bonus Book’ to a beautiful ending.