In this episode…
Se-ri gets her passport photos and Jung-hyuk begs the proprietor for an extra copy (though he refused earlier to get a couple photo with her). In the lobby, Seung-joon spotted her and dragged her into an elevator to ‘chat’ (hide from goons) which Jung-hyuk interrupts (eyes glaring). Se-ri introduces him as her bodyguard, but sees this as a chance to consider alternative arrangements for getting home. Dan and Seung-joon meet (again!) and share ideas on money and relationships, and later Dan and her mother get ready to save her future marriage and set up a parents meeting in the hotel as well. Foolishly, Se-ri does meet up with Seung-joon and they go for a walk, worrying Jung-hyuk like crazy until he’s called in to help out again. They head off for beer and chicken and see the first snowfall (we, and Se-ri, know what that means!) A picnic is staged with the Company 5 boys for farewell, this time with the men sorry to see her leave, even Chi-soo. She’s sent off to the airport not by Jung-hyuk, but by Kwangbum (the only one to know about the trucks of doom). Turns out Jung-hyuk’s made alternate arrangements — a hot motorcycle and a mobile armory, just in case — and they’re needed. A cycle/truck battle ensues and he’s shot!
Impressions…
Chingu: Robin – you are so right when you say that those village women remind you of El Cuartel de las Feas..indeed they do!! I thought that they would irritate me but because the scenes are quite short they turn out to be funny rather than tiresome.
Robin: If their scenes went on too long it would take precious time from the main story, but they work so well because they are short and because they’re such talented veteran actresses who know how to deliver a punch/line! They’re important too because they become a surrogate community, almost/quasi family in the making for Se-ri, who clearly does not have much in the way of family support.
Chingu: Is there anything more bittersweet than saying goodbye? Once again we have the coming departure and the sweet farewells and even though it’s the second..third?..time round..it always feels sad to think that if she did leave she’d never see these awesome people again.
Robin: It’s all the better (er, I mean sadder/poignant) because those piercing eyes of Hyun Bin’s speak volumes. I give you Exhibit N… in the photo above. But it’s not just him; I think that for all the anxiety and tension of being ‘behind enemy lines’ Se-ri is relaxing and coming to enjoy this fantasy interlude. She doesn’t really understand the danger, though, does she? When she asks him if he will get into trouble when she disappears in Europe and takes him at his word when he tells her that he will not she really should understand that he’s lying to her. She could earlier see through Seung-joon back in Seoul, but not be able to figure out that this would of course mean trouble for him? Maybe her lie-dar is not working across the border, much like that walkie-talkie, because who in their right mind would trust Seung-joon? He just reeks of falsehood!
Chingu: Manbok still searching for that inner courage..one step further but not close enough.
Robin: I really, really, really hoped that somehow he would have this time given a hint of warning at least to someone, even if not outright lying to Lt. Com Cho. But I suppose it’s tough rising up after being walked on for so long. One side note: notice how the bribe money they’re so busy flashing around is generally US dollars? What’s up with that?
Chingu: A jealous Binnie is an awesome sight don’t you think??
Robin: Of course he is (see above)! Watching him zipping along on that motorcycle was pure rowr-power too 😉 Hyun Bin has put those action movie skills to work once again. But the quiet moments when is watching her, that look of …longing, and maybe more, are something else again. I kind of wish we wouldn’t get these “Perils of Pauline” cliffhangers at the end of every episode, and I’m glad that I’m not live-watching this show, but if it allows him to show all of these skills, I’m cool with it!
Chingu: As to his official fiancee..I can’t dislike her..after all she’s just as much a “victim” of circumstance as he is..tied to a stranger for years. Is her coldness a reaction to his or just her nature?
Robin: I think it’s her nature; she’s proud of her status, her looks, etc. Se-ri is the first woman who could give her a run for her money with her shiny long (western) hair and clear skin. And it’s pretty clear that her fiancé cannot keep his eyes off of her, so she’s got to deal with this unusual jealous feeling of her own. Her mom’s ‘warpaint’ was pretty damn funny, but I really liked Jung-hyuk’s mom at that dinner. It was as if she was trying to postpone the wedding because she knew it was ALL wrong for her precious son in her own quiet way. Do you suppose Dad was all “get married now!” because of the trouble his son was getting into trying to find ways to help Se-ri? Of course he was! I’m more convinced that the marriage arrangement is one of those family things: e.g., the 2 men saying, “let’s marry our kids” and the kids have no say-so, and the original fiancé would have been his brother.
We Talk Dramas All Day 