In the captivating K-drama series “It’s Okay to Not Be Okay,” the main protagonist, Ko Moon-young, is a writer with an intriguing personality disorder who writes enchanting, yet dark fairy tales that reflect her complex psyche. Here are some of the fairy tales featured in the series:
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Episode 1: The Boy Who Fed On Nightmares
Watch the story video of The Boy Who Fed On Nightmares here.
Once upon a time, in a land not too far away, there was a young boy who faced the scariest dreams every night. These nightmares would sneak into his sleep, making him afraid and tired. He decided it was time to do something about it, so he set off on a daring adventure to find a wise old witch who could help him.
He promised the witch that he would do anything she asked in exchange for her magical assistance. The witch, with her mystical powers, quickly took away all the scary dreams. The boy was finally free from his nightly terrors and felt so relieved.
Years passed, and the boy grew up into a man, but something didn’t feel right. Even though he didn’t have those terrible dreams anymore, he found himself feeling unhappy. One special night, under the full moon’s glow, the witch returned, and the man asked her why he still felt this way.
The wise witch explained that life is like a great adventure with challenges and difficulties. She told him that only by facing these tough times, he could grow stronger, become more adaptable, and find his passion. Instead of just erasing his bad memories, she encouraged him to confront his inner battles and learn from his tough experiences.
The important lesson here is simple: to truly grow up and become a strong, wise person, you have to face your fears and overcome your challenges. Ignoring problems might seem easy, but it won’t lead to true happiness
Episode 2: The Lady In Red Shoes
Watch the story video of The Lady in Red Shoes here.
The little girl wore her red shoes wherever she went, even to a church. .Once you wore those shoes, your feet start dancing on their own, and you can never stop dancing or take off those shoes.. But even so, the little girl never gave up on those red shoes. In the end, the executioner had to cut off her feet. But the two feet that got cut off, still continued to dance in those red shoes. Some things can’t be torn apart, no matter how hard you try to do it. That is why obsession is noble and beautiful.
Episode 3: Sleeping Witch
Watch the story video of Sleeping Witch here.
Once upon a time in a castle in the middle of a deep forest lived a princess who had been asleep for many years. A needle on a spinning wheel will kill her.
That was the curse the evil witch put on the princess they day she was born.
Frightened, the king burned every spinning wheel in his kingdom to avoid the curse, but the princess ended up getting pricked by a thorn on the rose given to her by the witch in disguise and fell asleep. This fairy tale tells you that you can never escape your destiny.
Right. The prince’s kiss. I suppose he could break the curse. But don’t get your hopes up too high. Because, I will kill that prince.
Episode 4: Zombie Kid
Watch the story video of Zombie Kid here.
Once upon a time, in a little town, an unusual baby was born. This baby had pale skin, deep-set eyes and strange thorns growing all over him. The mother quickly realized that her child was not like the other kids; he was more like a zombie, lacking love and emotion, only craving food. Fearing the judgment of the villagers, she decided to hide him away in their cellar, making sure he was safe.
To keep her son alive, the mother would sneak into other farms, taking chickens and pigs to feed him. One day, a terrible illness and famine struck the village, and everyone fled, except for the mother, who couldn’t bear to leave her child alone.
As the mother’s food supplies dwindled, she made a heart-wrenching decision. She began by cutting off her own leg, then her arm, all to provide sustenance for her son. When she was left with just her torso, she crawled to her child and embraced him, allowing him to consume her entire body. In that moment, the zombie child uttered his first words, saying, “So Mom is really warm after all…”
Perhaps the boy’s constant craving for food was merely a longing for the warmth and love he had been missing all his life, locked away and shunned by the world.
Episode 5: Rapunzel and the Cursed Castle
Watch the video of Rapunzel and the Cursed Castle here.
A long time ago, deep inside the forest, there lived a little girl in a cursed castle. The girl’s mother always told her that she’s too special to live among everyone else outside the castle… However, the girl felt like she was imprisoned. So she prayed to the moon every day: ‘Please send me a handsome prince who can save me from here. Will he come today? Will he come tomorrow?’ The little girl waited every day for her prince to show up…
Episode 6: Bluebeard’s Secret
Watch the video of Bluebeard’s Secret here.
Once upon a time, a count with a blue beard lived alone in a huge castle. He was very wealthy but everyone avoided him out of fear because of his blue beard. But one day, a poor woman came to the castle and said that she wanted to be his bride. Brimming with joy, Bluebeard brought out all the jewels and treasures from each room and gave them to his wife as a gift. However, there was an exception, the room in the basement. He warned her to never go into that room but his curious wife eventually opened the secret door without telling her husband. Do you know what was in that room? Corpses of women were displayed on the walls. They were the wives of Bluebeard who had ignored his warning and opened that door. That’s how they all ended up.
Episode 7: The Cheerful Dog
Watch the video of The Cheerful Dog here.
In a cozy little village, there once lived a dog who spent his days tied to a small porch near a friendly tree. He had a talent for hiding his true feelings and wore a mask of cheerfulness, which made him quite popular among the villagers. They loved to play with him and keep him company. But as night fell, a mournful whine would escape from him, revealing his hidden sorrow.
You see, this dog had a deep longing to run and roam freely, but the chain that held him to the porch prevented that. One day, a tiny voice inside his heart whispered, “Hey, why don’t you just cut the leash?” The dog replied sadly, “I can’t. I’ve forgotten how.” He had grown so accustomed to being chained that he didn’t know how to break free.
The story teaches us a valuable lesson: sometimes, the keys to happiness and freedom are right in front of us, but we don’t recognize them because we’ve grown used to our current situation.
Episode 8: Beauty and the Beast
Watch the video of Beauty and the Beast here.
Ko Moon-young had always viewed the classic fairytale, Beauty and the Beast, through a unique lens. To her, it was a tale of Stockholm syndrome masked in the guise of a romantic story. She saw the Beast as a creature cursed into isolation, dwelling alone in his grand but desolate castle. When he took Belle hostage, it wasn’t an act of love but an exercise in power. The Beast, selfish and often harsh, groomed Belle, his captive. On the rare occasions when he showed her kindness or smiled faintly, Belle’s naïve heart would flutter, convincing her that she alone could change him. “The Beast is lonely,” Belle would think. “I should embrace him with my love. Only I can change him.”
In Moon-young’s own life, she found parallels to this story. She saw herself as Belle to Gang-tae’s Beast and vice versa. Gang-tae’s love had a calming effect on Moon-young’s violent nature, soothing her wounded soul. Meanwhile, Moon-young’s unwavering affection gave Gang-tae the courage to break free from his own shackles and be true to his feelings. Their love, like Aerum often said, embodied the greatest act a human being could perform: pure love. A love that could break all barriers and embrace someone wholeheartedly for who they truly are.
Episode 9: King Donkey Ears
Watch the video of King Donkey Ears here.
In Episode 9, our story focused on a theme called “The King with Donkey Ears.” This theme is based on a classic Greek tale about King Midas, which has been passed down to children all over the world. Here’s a brief summary of the story:
Once upon a time, there was a king who had a unique and challenging secret: he had donkey ears. He was absolutely terrified that the rest of the world would discover this unusual feature and mock him because of it. To keep his secret, he tried various ways to hide his ears, and the only person who knew his secret was his loyal barber. The king had entrusted his barber with this secret and warned him never to reveal it to anyone.
The barber faithfully kept this secret for many years, but eventually, he felt compelled to share it with someone. He couldn’t bear the weight of the secret any longer. So, one day, he dug a hole and whispered the king’s secret into it, thinking he was keeping his promise by not telling anyone directly.
However, the location of the hole was discovered by curious children, and when they listened, they heard the secret echoed back to them. The truth that the king had donkey ears was now known to all. The king was furious that his secret was out, and in his anger, he arrested the barber, vowing to imprison him forever. He insulted the barber for not keeping his promise and for revealing the truth.
Just as in the previous episode, we saw Sang Tae expressing his feelings of anger and disappointment towards Gang Tae. This episode reminds us that no secret can be hidden forever, and the truth has a way of coming to light, even when we least expect it.
Episode 10: The Girl Who Cried Wolf
Watch the video of King Donkey Ears here.
In The Boy Who Cried Wolf, the shepherd boy lied all the time. He repeatedly lied to the villagers, that one day when the wolf really appeared the villagers did not believe him. The boy lied to the villagers not because he was bored but because he was lonely. He did that because he was so lonely, all by himself in the mountains. But because he lied so much, when the wolf actually appeared, no one came to help him. Had even just one person believed him and came to help him, the boy would not have died.
Episode 11: The Ugly Duckling
Watch the video of The Ugly Duckling here.
In the story The Ugly Duckling, the other ducks are mean to the ugly duckling. They bully him because he looks different from then. So he gets really lonely, and leaves his family. But, what if mother duck had given lots of love to the ugly duckling. Then it wouldn’t have left. If adults embrace all their kids, the ducks and swans can all get along and live together just fine.
Episode 12: Romeo and Juliet
Watch the video of Romeo and Juliet here.
In the dim glow of the evening, Ko Moon Young’s voice broke the silence, her eyes filled with a mix of longing and determination. “We look like Romeo and Juliet,” she murmured, her words carrying the weight of an ancient, star-crossed destiny.
Gang Tae sighed, his brow furrowing as he considered their tumultuous journey. “The ill-fated mortal enemies,” he replied, his voice heavy with the burdens of their pasts. “Who should’ve never crossed paths.”
Moon Young’s gaze never wavered, her belief unwavering. “No. They’re meant to be. It’s fate.”
Gang Tae shook his head slowly, the shadow of a painful history lingering in his eyes. “It’s a tragic fate,” he whispered.
Their conversation echoed the timeless story of Romeo and Juliet, where two young lovers are caught in the web of their feuding families. In this episode, the complex family dynamics of Ko Moon Young and Gang Tae were laid bare. Their relationship, fraught with challenges and misunderstandings, unfolded like a modern-day retelling of the classic tragedy.
Moon Young and Gang Tae’s journey was not just about their personal struggles, but also about the intricate and often painful histories of their families. Despite the deep-seated resentments and conflicts that had shaped their lives, the episode underscored a powerful lesson: love has the extraordinary ability to bridge even the widest gaps.
Like Romeo and Juliet, Moon Young and Gang Tae faced seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Their families’ complicated pasts and the wounds of old grievances loomed large, threatening to tear them apart. Yet, amid the turmoil, the episode highlighted the resilience of love.
This story of Moon Young and Gang Tae serves as a poignant reminder of love’s transformative power. It shows that love, whether between two people or within a family, can mend wounds, heal rifts, and bring about reconciliation. Even in the face of the most daunting challenges, love can find a way to transcend anger, resentment, and conflict, forging connections that were once thought impossible.
Episode 13: The Father of the Two Sisters
Watch the video of The Father of the Two Sisters here.
In the story of “The Father of the Two Sisters,” two sisters endure severe abuse from their cruel stepmother. Despite seeing his daughters suffer, their father chooses to ignore their pain and does nothing to help them. The stepmother’s cruelty becomes so extreme that it almost leads to the sisters’ deaths. The story highlights that the father’s neglect is even worse than the stepmother’s direct abuse, emphasizing that turning a blind eye to abuse can be more damaging than the abuse itself.
Episode 14: The Hand, The Monkfish
Once upon a time, a beautiful baby girl was born into a wealthy family. She was as beautiful and flawless as magnolias. Her mother loved her so much that she pledge she’d do anything for her baby. She said she would even present to her the sun and the moon.
When the baby started eating solid foods, her mother was thrilled, “My sweet child, I will feed you everything you want to eat. Open your mouth wide like this ahhh”
When the baby started walking, her mother ran hurriedly to where she was. “My sweet child, I will carry you. Come on, hop on my back.”
After raising the baby by always providing her with everything she needed, the mother said this, “My beloved child, I need some rest now. Can you get me some food?”
Then the child spoke, “Mom, I have no hands. I never used them so they’ve vanished.”
“Then my sweet child, can you carry me on your back? My legs hurt.”
Then the child said this, “Mom, I have no feet. You always carried me on your back. So, I’ve never even stepped on the ground. But instead, I have a huge mouth,” and she opened her humongous mouth.
Then the mother shouted in anger, “You weren’t my perfect baby after all. You’re like a useless monkfish. All you can do is eat what I feed you. You can’t do anything on your own. You’re an utter failure.”
Then the mother threw the baby into the far away sea. Even since that day, it’s been said that the fisherman can hear a baby’s cry on spooky, windy days out on the sea.
“Mom. Mom. What did I do wrong? Please come and get me. Please come back and get me.”
This is a heartbreaking story. Spoiling your children and not allowing them to do things on their own will eventually catch up with the parents. We don’t always have someone to lean on. There are moments when we need to confront the world on our own.
Nurse Park
Episode 15: A Tale of Two Brothers
A long time ago, there lived two poor brothers who cared for each other very much. One day, it was the harvest season so they both harvested rice. The older brother was worried his little brother might run out of rice. So he secretly carried a sack of rice at night and left it in front of his little brother’s house. The same day, the little brother also carried a sack of rice and put it in front of his older brother’s house. Thinking that his older brother might need more due to his big family. When they woke up the next day, they both noticed that they still had the same amount of rice as before. The two brothers thought it was strange so they did the same thing at night and left a sack of rice in front of each other’s house. And that continued for days.
Episode 16: Finding the Real Face
Once upon a time in a castle in the deep forest, there lived three people who had their real faces stolen by the Shadow Witch. The boy wore a mask with an awkward smile. Then there was the princess who was loud but all empty inside, and there was also a man who was trapped inside a box. They couldn’t make any facial expressions because their faces were stolen from them. They had no way of understanding each other’s feelings, so they always misunderstood one another and fought. The Box Man spoke, “If we want to stop fighting and find happiness, we must retrieve our stolen faces”. So they hopped on their camping car and began their journey to find their real faces. Then one day, they run into a mother fox who was bawling, curled up on the snow. The Masked Boy asked the mother fox, “Ma’am, why do you keep crying?”. “Oh I came out here to find some food but dropped my baby whom I was carrying on my back somewhere in the snow,” the mother fox’s tears had run dry. She wailed while beating her chest. When the masked boy saw that, warm tears started gushing from his eyes. Then the snow began to melt quickly and the baby fox who was frozen under the snow soon appeared. The three of them resumed their journey. Soon, they ran into a clown who was dancing naked in a field of thorny flowers. The unemotionless Princess asked, “Why are you dancing with all your might knowing you’ll be pricked by the thorns?”. “I feel that this is the only way to make people look at me. But it hurts and no one’s looking at me,” he answered. The Emotional Princess walked into the field of thorny flowers and started dancing with the clown, “I am an empty can so I won’t be hurt even if I get pricked by the thorns”. When she began hopping and dancing, loud clanking noises echoed from her empty torso. And upon hearing those sounds, the people began to flock to where they were. The crowd watched their dance and applauded them. They began a new journey to find their stolen faces and the evil Shadow Witch appeared in front of them once again. She kidnapped the Masked Boy who shed tears on behalf of the mother fox, as well as the Emotional Princess who danced with the clown, “The two of you will never be able to find your happy faces”. After putting such a curse on them, she locked them in a deep, dark mole tunnel. The Box Man found the mole tunnel a few days later but the entrance was so narrow that he couldn’t go in. “What do I do? I need to take this box off my head in order to go into the tunnel”. That moment, the Masked Boy’s voice reached him from the inside of the tunnel, “Mister, don’t worry about us. Just ran far away. The Shadow Witch will return soon”. However, the Box Man mustered up the courage to take the box off his head. He went inside the tunnel and saved the Masked Boy and the Emotional Princess. Upon getting out of the dark tunnel, the two of them saw the man’s face covered with dirt and grime instead of the box and burst out laughing. They laughed and giggled. While laughing uncontrollably, the Masked Boy’s mask suddenly fell off. The can surrounding the Emotional Princess’ torso also fell off and made a clanking noise. The Box Man, now out of his box, said this when he saw the two of them finding their true faces while laughing, “I’m happy”. What the Shadow Witch had stolen from them was not their true faces but their courage to find happiness.
