I included this photo of Mi Young looking sad, because I like her jacket.
Side dish: When there is no time to prepare a meal, and you are nowhere near your ex-mother-in-law’s restaurant, try a Quick & Easy 30 Minute Pork Meal.
Episode Recap
We’ll never know if Gun intended to kiss Mi Young in the first scene of this episode, because her exhaustion finally gets the better of her, and she passes out. He takes care of her through the night, and Mi Young wakes up to find him sleeping by her bedside, holding her hand.
The next morning, Mi Young goes home to find a worried Daniel, and Gun goes to the office to upbraid Secretary Tak for not taking care of the company’s artists, namely Mi Young. Gun attempts to bring her some vitamins, but stops short when he finds her with Daniel.
Disapproving mothers abound as Gun’s half-brother, Lee Yong introduces Ji Yeon to his mother as his girlfriend. Daniel, meanwhile, runs into Se Ra being yelled at by her mother again, and comforts her with ice cream.
He has no ice cream for Gun, who insists that Mi Young complete her research inside the company building, citing confidentiality concerns. She agrees, but this is obviously a thin excuse to spend more time with Mi Young. As per usual, subtlety goes out the window as Gun settles himself in to watch her work. Uncomfortable, she throws him out, but instead of going home, Gun stays in the building to make sure she gets home okay.
The next day, making the most of the little time he has left with Mi Young, Gun gets her takeout from her mother’s restaurant. Gun and Mi Young end up arguing over the food, as she is angry that he is ignoring her wishes to stop seeing her mother, and Gun is unwilling to let Mi Young’s mom go. Gun fails at his attempt to lighten the mood with music (anyone know what this song is?), and Mi Young texts the buyer of her favourite painting, Young Ja (aka Gun) to distract from the awkwardness. Of course, Gun’s phone goes off, and he races from the room so she won’t notice, but accidentally calls her back. He ends up karate chopping Secretary Tak in the bathroom to shut him up while he talks briefly to Mi Young as Young Ja.
Back at her studio, Daniel brings Mi Young one of her early paintings for inspiration, but it doesn’t seem to be working. Gun texts Mi Young as Young Ja, and helps her out of her creative rut by saying that a woman filled with dreams is the most beautiful kind of woman. These two are killing me with their text chats, because these are the only scenes in the show where either of them looks remotely happy.
The next day, Secretary Tak announces to Gun that Mi Young is on her way, earning him multiple pats on the bum. Except when Secretary Tak opens the door, it’s Se Ra who walks in to invite Gun to lunch. Gun turns her down, but she runs into Mi Young on her way out. Mi Young reassures Se Ra that her relationship with Gun is strictly business, obviously still believing that Gun and Se Ra are together.
Gun and Mi Young seem resolved to let each other go, and after the presentation of her commercial for his products, their parting has a note of finality. At home, Gun tell the painting of Dog Poopie that he’s going to send it back to Mi Young so it can watch over her in France, since he can’t. Awwwwww.
He takes Dog Poopie to her studio, where he’s arrested by the sight of her early painting of a man covered with the lollipops that bring true love. While Daniel sits comfortably with her family, Mi Young walks in to the studio to find Gun there, holding on to the painting of Dog Poopie. The two of them face off, Gun having realized that Mi Young was not happy without him, and Mi Young realizing that Gun is Young Ja, the kindly buyer of her treasured painting.
Comments
Only 만: This episode was full of longing and emotions, but a little short on story.
Junggugeo Kaenada 중국어 캐나다: While watching Episode 16, I couldn’t help but think that the series is stagnating, and they chose a hell of a moment to do it. Why did the writers decide to slow down and focus on desperate Gun pursuing a cold Mi Young?
Only: I’m not sure, but as far as the plot is concerned, we’ve stalled completely. This episode started with the two of them facing each other in a dark room and ended with the two of them facing each other in a dark room, and not a whole lot of progress in between. The sole difference is that now Mi Young knows that Gun is the buyer of her painting, and Gun knows that Mi Young was not happy in Paris. Though, he’s clearly a better art critic than I am, because I don’t know how he gleaned that information from that painting.
Junggugeo Kaenada: I don’t know why it took a painting of lollipops for Gun to realize that Mi Young wasn’t happy. I mean, at no point since her return to Korea has she looked completely happy. She just seems exhausted all the time.
Only: The two of them are not very good at reading each other. Gun, for all his talk of not being attracted to Mi Young, is obviously still in love with her. Mi Young is obviously miserable. And yet, neither one of them have noticed this about the other.
Junggugeo Kaenada: You’re right; they seem oblivious to each other. To be fair, I am having a hard time reading Mi Young, too. She only seems to regard Gun with disdain, and her speech is pretty blunt about not wanting to see him. Occasionally, she seems uncomfortable around him. I failed to see any struggle within Mi Young against any lingering love for Gun.
Only: Yes, aside from the brief handholding at the start, the inner conflict seems to be all on Gun’s side. He’s very obviously struggling against his feelings, while trying to take care of her. Mi Young is clearly miserable when she’s around Gun, but you don’t get the same sense of longing from her that you do from him.
Junggugeo Kaenada: It would be a lot more compelling if the couple were both clearly fighting against their feelings for each other. But, enough about the stagnation between Gun and Mi Young. There is a developing relationship between Daniel and Se Ra, and I wonder how they are going to prevent it from taking incestuous overtones. What is to stop Daniel from becoming attracted to his sister when he is approaching her the same way he first approached Mi Young?
Only: Hopefully, the revelation of their relationship will put a stop to that. Which I’m hoping will arrive soon, or else this show is going to have an action-packed last episode with nothing but tears and longing in the episodes in between. Much as I love tears and longing (I don’t, but let’s not forget that I’m a jerk), I’d rather we go back to insane comedy, or you know, advance the plot.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Yes, the mood has been sad, in spite of the best efforts of Gun and Secretary Tak to be absurd. I have to say that I have been impressed with Jang Hyuk. He is really melding crazy seamlessly with regret and longing.
Only: Yes, you do have a weakness for actors that can combine ridiculous with intense, and Jang Hyuk has been doing a stellar job of it so far.
Junggugeo Kaenada: It is too bad that Jang Na Ra is not displaying that range, either because she can’t, or the writers and director are not giving her the opportunity to.
Only: I was hoping that when Mi Young came back with her newfound confidence, we would get to see her as the focus of the show, maybe with some of her comedic chops on display. Instead, we get to see the heroine of the show being cold and miserable.
That said, it sounds like I hated this episode, and I didn’t. I was hoping for more, but if we’re going to dwell on feelings, then this wasn’t the worst way to do it.
Junggugeo Kaenada: I did not hate this episode either, but I regarded it with Mi Young-like disdain. Perhaps, it will be easier for you to highlight the positives of this episode.
Only: Secretary Tak was a big one. I always enjoy his pats on the bum. Oh, and Yong introducing Ji Yeon to his mother as his girlfriend. I was glad someone’s relationship was progressing, at least.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Yong’s decision to commit to Ji Yeon surprised me. But then, viewers missed so many steps in the progression of their relationship that theirs feels less like a story, and more like a highlight reel. They could have taken away some of the time spent on Gun and Mi Young looking uncomfortable with each other, and focused more on Yong and Ji Yeon, instead.
Only: Indeed. Since the happy romantic moments of Gun and Mi Young’s relationship have disappeared, it would have been nice to get some from Yong and Ji Yeon instead. But, at least they’re together!
Junggugeo Kaenada: By next week, Yong and Ji Yeon may well resort to eloping. Meanwhile, I can only hope that Mi Young cheers up or, at least, shows some passion in regards to Gun. And, as Mi Young suggested, Gun should attempt to regain his dignity.
Only: As long as he keeps the laugh, he can chuck his dignity away for all I care. I just wish he sounded like he was having fun.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Yes, let’s simply hope for fun next week.
Fated to Love You (운명처럼 널 사랑해)
Noonas Over Forks 
I guess we feel the frustration all the OTP shippers within the story and outside of it feel. We are desperate for them to resolve their problems as much as Secretary Tak, Omma and Grandma are. But to me, this was one of the best episodes acting wise. In my opunion, both Jangs are excellent in making us feel their complex and tormented feelings for each other. I wouldn’t want less scenes from them. I feel this is what makes sense after the loss they went through. But I think besides the writing, the actors are portraying that inner conflict in such a wonderful way that it is a joy to watch. I include Jang Nara in this because I do feel her. That final scene was superb in my opinion.
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Acting wise, this was a great episode. Honestly, I’ve rethought some of what I said about Jang Na Ra, and I revised my opinion of her upwards. It’s not her fault that I was hoping for something else for her character. The bigger issue for me is that they could have depicted the emotional turmoil of Gun and Mi Young without stalling the plot to this extent. Nothing moved forward in these episodes at all, until the very last minute.
That said, I probably would have been more tolerant of the stalled plot if, for example, the episode had been funny rather than sad… this is where personal preference comes in. Not to worry, as long as I have Secretary Tak, I’ll be fine 😉
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Excellent point that they cannot read each at all. Their nonverbal cues to each other are not deciphered.
I concur they only seem happy during the text chats.
Here’s hoping they are realeased from their self imposed chains soon.
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Thank you for mention that if all the people are real and it not a Drama the divorce are so high as it is 🙂 Yes all your married couple start watching this drama may be I will help you to happy life 🙂
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I think we been had ? No body even mention the contain on their divorce paper one is real the other forging …Is the writer are trying to say no body care to look at what it written on it ( please make it clear even thou it Korea drama at it best 🙂 )
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Maybe Mi Young was so angry she didn’t read the divorce settlement? I hope they resolve the confusion with the multiple divorce settlements at some point too.
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