Netizens waited impatiently with battered breaths as they watched the blue and pink signs of 'We Got Married: Global Edition' merge in the opening of the new season.
 

There had been an explosive reaction when WGM released a statement that this season’s stars would feature the most hyper couple of all of WGM series: Got7’s Wang Jackson and EXID’s Park Junghwa.
 

But when it was released that a member of EXO would be participating, girls and boys everywhere shed tears of blood. And being the noobs talented and suspenseful series that it was, WGM did not announce which member it was. Nor did they announce who the bride of this EXO member would be which resulted in another nation-wide outrage.
 

But as the airing date came closer, all animosity towards this mysterious female was forgotten over the frantic realization that one of their oppas was going to be on TV, being all romantic and husband-like. It didn't matter that they didn't mention which EXO member it was because either way, they were going to live vicariously as their wives.

Episode 1: Meeting Each Other

The scene opened with a slow establishing shot of Apgujeon. Teenagers were walking past, carefree and oblivious to the fact that they were being filmed. In large blue and grey fonts, a caption appeared across the screen.

In a recording studio in Seoul...

The video cut to a blurred image which quickly sharpened to show off long fingers coaxing guitar strings to sing. Then those fingers paused, lifting to curl around a pen and a symphony of scribbling against paper played.

A lone man is going to embark on a special journey...

The camera showed the back of the man, pulling the audience's attention to the broadness of the shoulders and the subtle definition of back muscles against the grey and black woolen cardigan as he gently placed the guitar against the wall and walked out of the shot. The camera focus pulled from the guitar to the paper that was riddled with song lyrics and music notes.
 

The footage jumped to the man exiting the building and the camera slowly panned upwards, showing maroon ankle boots (with the brand pixilated – but it was obvious that it was a pair of Dr Martin boots) that were connected to long legs clad in dark blue skinny jeans. Then it slowly came up to the torso where a pale yellow T-shirt was cloaked by the long baggy grey and black cardigan. The camera shifted again, coming out of focus heavily as if to tease the audience by prolonging the revealing of the EXO member's identity.

What is the identity of our fairytale prince?

"Ohhh~?" A baritone voice rang loud and clear, making fans everywhere take a deep, shuddering breath in recognition. The audience could see the tall silhouette stooped a little and a blurry hand waved. Finally, the focus clarified (with sparkling sound effects in the background), confirming to the fans that this season's mystery husband was indeed the...

Cheerful rapper of EXO-K, idol Park Chanyeol!

There were a series of short video clips of Chanyeol performing fiercely during MAMA with captions highlighting his vocal talents and eye catching charisma. Then it transitioned to newer video footage of a more serious Chanyeol composing and relaxing with the other EXO members. The captions now sang praises about his songwriting abilities and easygoing personality.

-EXO-

The scene suddenly changed to Chanyeol sitting in front of a dark fuchsia wall where the WGM holographic logo floated around. A hot pink rectangle with a large 'Q' asked Chanyeol, ‘how did you feel when you found out you were going to be on WGM?’
 

Chanyeol laughed bashfully. "It's a big honor. I was expecting another member to do it so I was surprised when I got picked." The shot cut to Chanyeol rubbing the back of his head thoughtfully. "Honestly, I've always wanted to come on the WGM show but now that I'm actually here, I feel like, wah. This is it. I'm a man now. When my family heard that I was going to be on WGM, Yura noona said, 'Maybe Chanyeol will finally act like a grown up now.'" He laughed, making the crew snicker as well.

-EXO-

The scene went back to Chanyeol who was still smiling. A phantom hand (that belonged to the PD) passed over a small item and Chanyeol raised an eyebrow. "Is this for me? Kamsahamnida." Chanyeol gave a little bow (a rectangular caption in light blue 'polite idol' appeared above his head). "Wow. Is this the wedding invitation?"
 

Chanyeol lifted the elaborate square-shaped wedding envelope up to show the audience. It was painted gold with sharp intricate lines cut out to look like a lace and was bound together with a strip of cream ribbon. Chanyeol carefully opened the ribbon and unraveled the four sides to see the actual card with golden scriptures.
 

“Just like a page out of a fairy tale, the storybook romance of... wah~" Chanyeol paused his reading to let out a satisfied sigh. "Park Chanyeol," He continued, pointing happily at himself, his mouth open in a silent scream. Another caption 'Excited puppy' appeared next to his head.
 

Then his eyebrows knitted together when he read the next few lines, "And deng deng request the honor of your presence on Friday... deng deng? I don't get to know who she is?" He looked at the camera with a confused expression before the phantom hand struck again, handing over a WGM mission card and something else.
 

Chanyeol accepted it quickly, once again thanking the PD, and read the words on the card out loud. The camera gave the audience an over-the-shoulder view to let us read along with him. "Find your princess! The magic photo will tell you the location of your princess who is waiting for her true love. Find her before the clock strikes 7!"
 

Chanyeol sighed heavily (Caption: Can't I simply meet my wife-to-be? *crying emoticon*) as he looked down at the time on his phone. It was already 5.48 pm. He only had a little over an hour. He quickly scanned the Polaroid. "Oh?! Isn't this Han River? It's Han River, isn't it? It looks like Nanji Park, doesn’t it?" He showed the Polaroid to the camera. "Oh! There are words on the back." Chanyeol squinted at the words. "Irish-Korean? So... this is the hint about her? Okay. Let's find her first. Everyone, wish me luck. Fighting!" Chanyeol pumped his fist in the air.

-EXO-

Q. What were your thoughts when you found out your wife is Irish-Korean?
 

The camera showed Chanyeol's side profile as he thought about the question with his head lowered. The spotlight above his head casted a soft glow on him, his dark brown hair appearing to look caramel brown under the light.
 

"Ahh... honestly, I was slightly nervous because my English is not the best of the group." Chanyeol's arm made a sweeping motion. "Like, Kyungsoo has better English so I was a little worried that there might be a language barrier.” He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “A happy marriage... needs good communication right?"
 

A caption appeared under his dropped head. 'The thoughtful groom worries about the happiness of his married life.'

-EXO-

Meanwhile... along the banks of the Han River, is a woman

There was a blurred silhouette of a girl. It was only made obvious that the person was a girl because of the long, wavy black hair that flew with the wind's playful breath and the subtle feminine curves outlined by the cream and black dress. The video suddenly jumped to a close up of small hands holding a savory bread. A large pink question mark appeared as the camera followed the bread's journey to her petal pink lips.

A princess who enjoys curry bread more than the thought of her prince

"Hmm~ yup, curry bread is the best." She said in English, Korean subtitles appearing underneath. The camera zoomed out to show the princess' side profile. A slow romantic piano music played as she slowly turned towards the camera with chipmunk cheeks and her vivid hazel eyes widened. She covered as she asked in accented broken Korean, "Oh, are you filming already?"

YouTube sensation, Kim Ciara of KSquared!

Similar to Chanyeol's montage of video clips, Ciara also had short video clips of her YouTube videos (caption: with the title of 'top 30 most subscribed YouTube channels' under her belt, this princess is an up and rising entertainer of the year) and her cuts in Hello Counselor which highlighted her empathetically comforting the guest of that episode (caption: Her sun-like beauty and sensitive side won the nation's heart with her appearance on Hello Counselor).

-EXO-

Like with Chanyeol, the scene transformed into the dark room with the WGM sign on the dark fuchsia wall behind her. Ciara's hair that had been free flowing was now tied into a messy plait that she swept over her left shoulder.
 

Q. Were you curious to know who your husband-to-be was?
 

"Yes. Very." Ciara answered in English (Korean subtitles appearing underneath). "I mean, despite my interest at the time looking like it was solely on the curry bread, I was really curious to know who my partner was. I heard he was part of the boyband EXO but I didn't know the band very well so it was a very surprising experience for me."

-EXO-

The scene returned to Nanji Park where Ciara was. The afternoon sun was starting to set, making the horizon bleed orange. She awed at the scenery in front of her before biting another piece of the curry bread, finishing the bread. "Now, shall we move on?" She grinned at the camera, hand suddenly producing a handkerchief from her pocket which she used to wipe . The phantom hand passed over a Polaroid camera. "So I take a picture of a clue, is that right?" Ciara asked. "Okay." Ciara held up the wrapper of the curry bread up to her eyes and snapped a photo.
 

The Polaroid picture appeared on the screen. Most of the photo was taken up by the wrapper which showed it was from 'GoDaeBang' bakery. There was little address near the bottom which showed that the bakery was in Korea University's campus. Peeking from the white wrappers were hazel eyes crinkled into crescent moons. The setting sun brought out the golden tones of her light olive skin and accentuated the light smattering of freckles across her nose.
 

"Done. Now to the next location!" Ciara cheered, raising her arm in a superman worthy pose. (A pink caption box appeared next to her head: a cheerful superwoman wife?)

-EXO-

Q. What did you think of making your husband go on a wild goose chase?
 

Ciara let out a small chortle. "I liked it." The camera switched to another angle, zooming in on her face. The sides of her lips remained curved upwards even as she spoke. “I think it kind of made everything more realistic. You know, the cat and mouse chase aspect of courtship. Um…” The camera angle shifted again to face her front as she rubbed the back of her neck, cringing a little. “If my family was here? Um… they would probably offer all sorts of condolences to Chanyeol.” There was a burst of laughter from the staffs.

-EXO-

Chanyeol finally arrived at the park, only to find another Polaroid photo instead of his bride-to-be. Chanyeol sighed, white mist coming out of his mouth from the cold temperature. “I was too late huh?” He brought the Polaroid to his face and his eyes widened slightly, lips curving to give the audience a toothy grin.
 

“Oh?! Is this her?” Chanyeol tapped at the eyes on the photo before looking down at the photo again. Twin computerized red ovals appeared on his cheeks to imitate a blush. “So this photo tells me where I should be going next? Where could this be? Let me use my detective powers.” Chanyeol announced, shutting his eyes close, eyebrows furrowed into a look of concentration.
 

The soundtrack of BBC Sherlock played with random computerized numbers and place names appearing around him. (Caption: Park detective in action) The camera zoomed in on his eyes as they snapped open. “K university. Let’s go!” There was a background recording of laughter that played very briefly as he got back into the van.
 

The video then shifted to the van’s blackbox’s footage which show the fast forward journey to K University. There was another establishing shot of the campus with a caption introducing the university as one of the oldest institutions of higher education in South Korea. Chanyeol stepped out of the vehicle to the sound of screaming fangirls who somehow found out that WGM would film there. Chanyeol smiled and bowed when appropriate but focused more on finding the university’s bakery.  
 

Chanyeol turned towards the cameraman as he walked, lifting the polaroid, “So it says here that she studied at the university as an exchange student so let’s hope that she is still around here somewhere.” Chanyeol said, flashing another smile at the camera as he caught sight of the bakery. “There there!” His walk quickened into a jog before his long legs broke out into a full-on sprint towards the bakery, inciting the screams of fangirls. The video footage of Chanyeol running slowed down with dramatic music playing in the background.

He runs towards his destination… hoping to meet his love

The scene cuts to the back of a head full of black hair. The head also turns slowly, keeping the same slow-motion pace as Chanyeol’s running. The scene goes back to Chanyeol who now ran into the bakery before going back to Ciara whose head was now fully turned. The music stopped and the speed returned to normal.
 

Chanyeol let out a frustrated groan between his pants.
 

Ciara blinked, her cheeks once again puffed out into chipmunk cheeks with guilty looking eyes.
 

We see many colored padlocks behind Ciara’s head which contrasted the wheat colored wallpapers in front of Chanyeol.
 

They were at different locations.
 

“Mr. Groom?” Came the shy voice of the shop assistant who covered her large grin with one hand and offered Chanyeol another Polaroid. Chanyeol took a deep breath and walked up to the cashier, accepting the Polaroid with his thanks. Always the polite idol. The camera angle down on the Polaroid which showed a padlock with small neat handwriting that read, “Will we be able to meet at all today?” The back of the Polaroid had only two words on it.
 

Kim Ciara
 

“Ci-a-ra? That’s her name?” Chanyeol looked somewhat mystified by learning the name of his bride-to-be. “That’s a pretty name.”
 

“Chanyeol-ss-ah! I mean, Mr. Groom,” The shop assistant stuttered, a deep red blush taking over the span of pale skin on her cheeks. Her head tipped in embarrassment as she passed Chanyeol a paper bag. “A lady left this for you.”
 

Chanyeol thanked the shop assistant again, taking the bag (accidentally brushing hands with the shop assistant who squeaked with happiness) and peeked inside. “What’s this?” He reached inside and held up an item; a pastry in a sealed plastic bag with a yellow post-it note on it. “I hope you like chocolate éclairs. Please regain your strength with this. We are one step closer to meeting! Hwaiting! (Smiley face)”

The owner of handwriting on the other hand was... eating once again

Ciara looked around the place, slowly popping another slice of the kimbap into . The camera slowly panned across the location, showing off the beautiful night life of Seoul and the colorful parade of padlocks with little love messages behind the bench she was sitting on.
 

The caption introduced the place as Namsan Tower's 'padlocks of love' and how it was very popular with young couples. The camera snapped back to Ciara watching a music video on her phone. An EXO music video that is; Call Me Baby. She watched it intently, giggling at times, jaw dropping at times and eating another slice of the kimbap at times. (Caption: the wife is captivated by her husband's performance)

-EXO-

Q. How did you feel when you realized that one of them was going to be your husband?

Ciara hunched over with her head in her hand, shoulders shaking with laughter. Her skin tone did not allow the blush to escape the audience's notice. She straightened up again, running a hand through her long bangs that had come out from the messy plait.
 

Ciara in her cheeks before beaming, "All those hip s? Jackpot." She and the staff crew burst out laughing. “But like I said, I’m not too familiar with the kpop industry because my father is Irish and we live in Northern Ireland, so I listen to more of the Celtic music genre. The only Korean music that I have been exposed to is Korean Trot music because my mom used to be a Trot singer.” She explained, placing a hand on her chest. She beamed again, “So when I saw those bucks in the music video, I was thinking, wow, the lord has truly blessed me.”

-EXO-

A phantom voice (the PD’s voice) asked, “Ciara-ssi, who do you hope to be your husband?” Ciara made a thinking face as she continued chewing, the chipmunk cheeks slowly thinning.
 

“The blonde one? What’s his name? L-Lay?” Ciara’s eyebrows knitted slightly as she stuttered before making a gesture towards her own face. “He has a very kind looking face. Very soft. He looks like the perfect husband material.”
 

There was the sound of chuckling which made her brighten like the sun after a shower. “Is it him? Is my husband Lay?” She asked excitedly. A little head shot of Chanyeol with edited waterfall of tears appeared with a speech bubble that said, ‘Ciara-yah, I’m your husband.’
 

Ciara who continued to watch more EXO music videos and eat more kimbap before the camera showed the time on the PD's phone. It was 6:36. Ciara also seemed to notice the time and looked around floor for any familiar faces from the music videos. She then rose from the bench, walking around a little, looking as if she was searching. The clock slowly turned from 6:36 to 6:46.
 

A slow, melancholic piano music played in the background as she looked out into the magnificent view of nighttime Seoul from the railings. 6:46 turned to 6:56. The camera closed up on the dejected expression on her face as she sat back down on the bench. “Is he still not here?” She muttered, looking down at her lap.
 

The video cut to red boots walking swiftly. The melancholic piano music was replaced by the chorus of EXO’s XOXO. A figure appeared.
 

Chanyeol looked around with wide eyes, panting lightly.
 

Ciara looked up and turned her head, doing a double take.
 

The two made eye contact.

The Prince and his Princess finally meet

Chanyeol walked towards Ciara with long, purposeful strides as Ciara rose to her feet slowly. He broke out into a hesitant smile first and her lips automatically curved into a bright smile in response. Chanyeol stopped in front of her, taking in the sight of his bride-to-be.
 

She stood up only to his collar and was tanner than the usual milky white complexion that most Korean girls possessed but other than that, she fitted the criteria for Korea’s standard of beauty. She was cute.
 

“Hello. I’m Park Chanyeol.” Chanyeol said in English, in case the girl didn’t understand Korean.
 

Ciara chuckled, before answering in Korean, “Hello. I’m Kim Ciara.”