Side dish: I’m not sure why, but brick toast seemed like a great idea today. Here’s a recipe from Eugenie Kitchen for Shibuya Honey Toast.
Police detective, In Gook Doo (Ji Soo) insists on staying over at the house of gaming CEO Ahn Min Hyuk (Park Hyung Sik) to protect the chastity of super strong woman, Do Bong Soon (Park Bo Young). Since no one can figure out the appropriate sleeping arrangements, they decide to stay up all night, with the two men competing as a bored Bong Soon looks on. By the end, Gook Doo and Min Hyuk are so drunk that Bong Soon has to carry them home, beating up some thugs along the way.
The next morning Gook Doo and Min Hyuk’s memories come flooding back over breakfast, as Min Hyuk and Gook Doo are reminded of drunkenly dancing and flirting with each other. When Gook Doo is called away, Min Hyuk and Bong Soon go straight back to bickering again.
Min Hyuk tracks down the motorcycle that was used in the attacks against him, but they’re sidetracked by a woman being bullied by a man after a fender bender. Bong Soon steps in to teach the guy a lesson, and afterwards, an awestruck Min Hyuk offers to teach her to harness her powers for good. Meanwhile, Gook Doo is dumped by his girlfriend.
Min Hyuk takes Bong Soon to his parents’ house, and announces that she’s his girlfriend. Despite her horror at the situation, the next day they start their training regimen. Later, Bong Soon goes to the police station for an interview about the kidnapper, where she reveals that their eyes met and that he smells like fresh asphalt. On their way out, Bong Soon comforts Gook Doo about his girlfriend, and he wonders aloud why they’re just friends.
Back in Dobong-dong, Bong Soon’s super strong grandmother comes to visit, and the kidnapper shows his face to his latest victim.
That night, someone breaks into Min Hyuk’s house, and holds a knife to his throat.
Episode Review
Only 만: I don’t know about you, but this episode felt to me like it was all over the place.
Junggugeo Kaenada 중국어 캐나다: It was definitely a time waster filled with fanservice, which I don’t necessarily object to. They have 16 episodes to fill up, so they’re going to use filler at some point. At least, they haven’t resorted to flashbacks. Judged for what it was, did you enjoy the threesome allnighter?
Only: Only up to a point. Watching Gook Doo doing a sexy dance and passing out in Min Hyuk’s arms was pretty funny, but I can’t figure out two things: why Min Hyuk doesn’t just speak up when Bong Soon repeatedly characterizes him as gay, and why, when Gook Doo figures out that he isn’t, is Gook Doo suddenly okay with Bong Soon staying over? Also, sure, whatever, it was funny, but I can’t buy into the fact that I’m supposed to believe it was completely out of character once they sobered up.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Maybe, Min Hyuk feels like the only way to get Bong Soon to agree to stay over at his house is for her to believe that he has no sexual interest in her? What I don’t understand is how Gook Doo, Kyung Shim and Bong Soon’s mother have all figured out so definitively that Min Hyuk is not gay.
Only: Especially since Gook Doo remembers how he and Min Hyuk were acting the night before. In the end, we already know that this whole gay misunderstanding storyline is an excuse for fanservice; here’s hoping they at least come up with a reasonable explanation for everyone’s supposedly out of character behaviour.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Unfortunately, the gay rumours about Min Hyuk were enough to cause his father’s company’s stock prices to tumble, which is a disturbing implication of homophobia in Korea. Though, instead of leading to any real social commentary, this has just fed into the possibility of a contract marriage scenario.
If the fan service is causing more head scratching than squeeing, what did you enjoy about this episode?
Only: The bickering, as per usual. The morning after breakfast, with Bong Soon pretending to be unable to open a jar so that Gook Doo would open it for her was pretty funny, as was Bong Soon’s sudden switch in personality the minute Gook Doo was out the door.
Junggugeo Kaenada: I got a kick out of seeing Bong Soon carry unconscious Min Hyuk and Gook Doo, and I like how she is hesitating less in intervening when she sees injustice. Her exasperation with the fact that Min Hyuk was able to cow that asshole driver simply because Min Hyuk is a man was a great highlighting of misogyny. Best of all, Min Hyuk now knows about Bong Soon’s powers, and he has decided that he will help turn her into the hero she is meant to be.
Only: How do you feel about the kidnapper storyline? I have mixed feelings about it.
Junggugeo Kaenada: The police incompetence is the annoying part, but that seems to be par for course when it comes to crime storylines in Korean dramas.
Only: I’m not a huge fan of the kidnapper’s scenes. I almost wish Bong Soon’s nemesis had been a really good bank robber or something, instead of a guy who collects women.
Junggugeo Kaenada: I assume that the writer wanted a crime that hits Bong Soon personally, because the kidnapper is targeting women. But, it’s an icky premise, and it appears that the kidnapper may have sexually assaulted one of his victims in this episode.
Only: I agree on the reasoning that this would be personal to Bong Soon, but I just wish that icky crimes against women wasn’t the default. But, to be specific to this show, this guy’s ickiness feels out of sync with the rest of the drama so far.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Again, the disconnect between a crime and the rest of the drama appears to be par for course when it comes to Korean dramas. I just wish the criminal was actually clever, and not just benefiting off police incompetence.
Only: By contrast, the gangsters who are trying to build over their neighbourhood seem almost jolly.
Junggugeo Kaenada: I did find that scene In which the teen thugs who are now picking up garbage in a bid to curry favour with Bong Soon come face-to-face with the gangsters who are now serving as community watch, hilarious. And, the scene introduced Bong Soon’s grandma, who appears to have retained her hereditary strength.
Only: Bong Soon’s grandma was a badass. I’m guessing we’ll see more of her in the next episode and I’m looking forward to it. Especially since Bong Soon’s scary mom gets all mushy around her.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Between Grandma and Bong Soon, maybe there will finally be some headway in dealing with the Dobong-dong kidnapper. That leaves the problem of Min Hyuk’s attacker. Do you have any prediction on who is holding a knife to his throat in the final scene?
Only: I think it’s Gook Doo. He seems like the type to teach people lessons about being safety conscious by scaring the crap out of them.
Junggugeo Kaenada: Let’s hope that’s who it is, because I have no confidence in Bong Soon’s hero capabilities at this point.
Noonas Over Forks 