Bad Guys - Episode 8 (A Recap)

Did he or did he not? That is the question. And we're starting to get answers. Unpleasant ones. I'm pretty sure the bromance isn't strong enough to survive this! TT_____TT
JoAnne: I say you can't take anything anyone says as the full truth yet.
bcook: Things aren't adding up! 
Well, maybe that's why this episode is called: "The Shadow of Truth" 


Episode 8: The Shadow of Truth

"Lee Jung-moon: you really are a killer. The killer in the Hwayeondong serial murders is you". And very conveniently, it's all photo-documented. Or is it? Every Tuesday, Jung-moon would follow somebody - into their house. Exactly one hour later, he'd come out. All of the people he followed were carried out in body bags. Still: nobody saw him kill them. But get this: Jung-moon always returned to the crime scenes afterwards. Drawn there by guilt? By what?
JoAnne: He is a GOOD BOY. Okay, maybe I am not quite as dispassionate about the outcome of this particular question as I am trying to pretend to be.
bcook: Color me skeptical but if this photographer guy believes he's really a serial killer... why is he not afraid of him? (Isn't he?) They're all a little to eager to call him a killer. #notallsociopaths
And OH SHEEEEET, the last one he killed was Goo-tak's daughter. His photographer tells him how scared he was of him then (and that he thinks he faked his memory loss). The thing that so badly freaked him out (so that he never went back to his office) was Jung-moon's smile. And his weird, weird voice when he croaked: "I killed them. All of them. I killed them all".
JoAnne: He definitely did not do it. Yeah, objectivity out the window on this one, baby.
bcook: Nope, not buying it.
Jung-moon's panicked face as the "truth" sinks in is heart breaking to watch. Goo-tak's (he is standing outside, eavesdropping) stony face as he gets confirmation is just scary. Jung-moon shambles home through empty streets, remembering his girlfriend's words: he also killed his own parents (remember? Episode 1). But he is a genius, so he may be rattled, but that brain of his is still working properly. He takes a closer look at the photos: There's a black car on them - it seems he got out of that before he killed.
Somewhere deep inside, he knows the truth. GOOD BOY. He is a GOOD BOY.
Ah, but what is good and what is bad? This drama is meddling with those destinctions in a good-bad way
He walks on ... and Goo-tak walks closely behind him, remembering the last conversation he had with his daughter. Remembering discussing the details of her murder with a detective. Why was his daughter found outside and not inside like all the other victims? And as he breaks down in the flashback, talking about his failure as a father since she went to heaven without even eating the stew he cooked for her, vowing to kill the bastard who murdered her and then begging at her grave for forgiveness, he pulls his gun in the present and takes aim at Jung-moon's back.
Oh come on, for pete's sake. If he had a suspicion that it was Jung Moon all along do you really think he'd have worked with him that way? There were moments of bonding. How would you bond with someone you honestly thought of as a suspect in your own child's murder? The answer: you wouldn't. So I call bullshit on this, writer.
bcook: I was totally yelling at the screen. You can't shoot on a suspicion! Try not to be like a wild dog Goo-tak.
Jung-moon stops. And takes his hands out of his pocket. And closes his eyes. He totally knows who's behind him, doesn't he? It looks like Goo-tak is about to shoot when Lady Mi-young arrives with a bunch of police officers (booo, where are the other Bad Guys?!). Goo-tak quickly hides in the shadows.
A man who is ready to die because he believes he might have killed other people is not a murderer in his heart. He just isn't.
bcook: ... I wouldn't go that far Jo.
Oh, look who's there also! It's Prosecutor Oh. THIS guy, though. Snake. Like Mi-young, he demands to know why Jung-moon disappeared like that from the hospital. He then smirks and says it's probably going to be like three years ago between them: Jung-moon will rely on the fact that he's a psychopath, whatever he does wrong. And psychopaths get off easy, don't they? Hm... I wonder where that hate comes from.
Probably he's jealous because he has to hide his own psychopathic tendencies, and Jung Moon gets to show his. Snake. Bastard. You know he is. The air in the room gets colder when he walks in. *sobs for the hotness, though*
bcook: He's a bit creepy eh? There's totally animosity, more than necessary. I don't trust this Oh guy.
Mi-young is intimidated by Prosecutor Oh's appearance - and apologizes for not telling him about Jung-moon's disappearance right away. Well, looks like that doesn't matter, since he knew anyway. Instead of riding in the van with Jung-moon, she gets into Oh's car since she's curious about his relationship with Jung-moon. As we know, he was in charge of his case - but not the Hwayeondong serial murders. Before that. The case that turned Jung-moon into a psychopath. 
See? This cannot be good. And little Miss DogCatcher is totally going to buy whatever Hot Prosecutor tells her, because he's one of the 'good guys' right?
bcook: I just want her gone! What is her purpose in this show? And she got top billing on the poster?! Ugh.
Of course, it's the death of his parents. He comes home ... and there they are, dead, their blood all over the floor. But there's somebody else in the apartment!!! Searching for something, commenting that it's not there. The two intruders (burglars? something else?) become aware of Jung-moon ... and he closes the door. "Why my house?" he asks in his dead-pan way. Grabs a stone, THAT stone ... and kills the thieves. Self-defense, then! Yes, that's what the police thought, says Oh, at least until they looked at the crime scene. Cut to Jung-moon, dripping with blood and shaking. It's no longer self-defense if you use excessive force, we learn. So Jung-moon went crazy?
Looks like it... but what were the dead men looking for? And I don't think this makes him a bad guy, either. He needs some help, though. He totally lost it. At least that's what they want us to think.
bcook: It was just adrenaline right? Makes sense, maybe they were what was keeping him sane and (relatively) normal and seeing them like that... he just snapped.
Still, Prosecutor Oh let him go free at that time. Mainly because he was diagnosed as mentally ill. When the serial killers happened afterwards, Oh resigned, since he was partially responsible for not keeping Jung-moon off the streets. Never again will he make the same mistake. And that's the reason why he joined this team.
So what I wonder is this: at what point did Hot Prosecutor go bad? Because you know he did, right? It has to be that. They can't seriously mean he's another Oh Goo Tak, out to take back the streets with a personal vendetta in the mix. That's one two many Oh's for the story to hold up.
bcook: There's something about them Oh's eh? 
Maybe they're brothers!  
Jung-moon is back at the hospital, but he is not alone. Goo-tak is waiting for him there. Goo-tak wants to know how he felt when he killed those burglars: Happy? Sad? Empty? When his daughter died, he was a complete wreck at first. Eating, sleeping ... he couldn't do it. But his stupor didn't last long - he started caring for himself again. Because he wanted to be stronger than his daughter's murderer. And OUT comes the gun again!
I'm willing to consider that he never considered Jung Moon as a potential suspect in his daughter's murder before, and that what he heard from the PI was a shock. He was willing to let the guy earn his freedom. And yet he has sworn to kill his daughter's murderer. Does not compute that he would have thought Jung Moon was it/might be it all along.
Jung-moon looks him in the eye - unafraid? And asks: "Do you think I'm the one who killed your daughter?" So there's still doubt, is there - in both men's heads. And there is more doubts and suspicions: Why did he seek him out in prison, Jung-moon wants to know, and why did he mention his ex-girlfriend? (Whom he then ran to) What does Goo-tak want from him: the truth or simply someone to hate? If it's the first, help him one last time - if it's the second, pull the trigger.
I really liked this scene. Jung Moon is in that place where you can't avoid what's meant to be, you just make your moves and keep going forward - no point in worrying about it will work out.
bcook: It doesn't add up! Does Goo-tak know more than he's saying? Is that why he was able to give him the benefit of a doubt? What would his Jung-moon's gf be sorry about?
Well, Goo-tak goes for pulling the trigger, but he stops himself at the very last moment. In case there's still hate after they find the truth, Jung-moon tells him to do as he wishes. He gives him the photo of the car. Goo-tak takes the photo and leaves without asking what kind of car it is.
I am a little rocked, though, at the thought of what it would feel like to be working next to someone, getting to know them, thinking they had maybe had a raw deal and that they weren't a bad person like everyone thought... and then finding out they actually destroyed your life. That would be unbearable.
bcook: I'm just glad he didn't shoot. He's not that guy. No matter what he thinks he's capable of.
Cut to a body ... it's the Pipewrench killer. He committed suicide by hanging. Mi-young doubts that's true: it looks very much like strangling to her. But there's an attorney or something (a real dick!) who says an autopsy is out of the question. He is to be cremated and that's that. Order from some higher-ups.
Awww, did da wittle muderer not win da contest?
When Mi-young steps outside the morgue, she runs straight into Prosecutor Oh, who seems to be everywhere these days. He tests her loyalty to Commissioner Nam (who just might be the one that issued that order) and then laughs in her face: the real reason why he joined their little gang? To dissolve the "Special Investigation Unit". And she should figure out how to destroy it for him. Cause she will go far if she helps him - and might fall deep if she keeps supporting Nam instead. Who, by the way, went to visit the now dead serial killer in his cell last night. Huh.
So I visit you yesterday and today you kill yourself and somehow that's my fault?  Or is the implication that he was found first thing in the morning, and somehow no one noticed him all evening or night? Did I magically influence you?  Am I the death whisperer?
bcook: *struck* death whisperer? Sounds like the next TvN drama. Why is this annoyance whispering? Is that supposed to be a smoky, sexy voice?
Mi-young goes to see Nam after that, who is tending to his son's grave. He went to see the serial killer because he wanted to forgive him. But the fucker just laughed at him and said he'd come for him after he get out (and then?! Is this a hint that Nam killed the guy?!). Mi-young wants to know why Nam picked her to be part of the Investigation Unit. Because she is smart and ambitious, is the answer. Which means: she doesn't understand the world and doesn't understand people. Mi-young is deeply hurt by those words - and she bids farewell with tears in her eyes.
Huh? So Nam kills the guy for not being remorseful, then basically confesses it to Mi Young, Miss By the Book? No. Sure, we are supposed to wonder. But I don't think so. That's not his character. Mi Young was very hurt by those words, which I think are nonsense, by the way - the most ambitious people usually have a very keen understanding of how to get ahead - but somehow I just think all of this is a misdirect. You watch.
bcook: I actually thought he was complimenting her. She's eager to get ahead so she won't be swayed by regular people emotions. She'll get the job done and won't be swayed. That's why smart, ambitious people get the hard projects. *shrug* or maybe that's just how I see it. You could tell Nam realized she didn't see it as the compliment he did.
Next, we're at a police graduation ceremony, which drags oooooon and on. Suddenly, the guy who's been talking and torturing people is interrupted by loud calls: Goo-tak has arrived! He is looking for a police officer named Chang-jun, who used to be Goo-tak's partner back in the days. Goo-tak wants him to find out who the black car belongs to. It takes him 5 seconds: The owner is a guy named Cha Jin-man and he owns an illegal taxi business. 
So very, very stupid.
Goo-tak goes to the hospital and collects Jung-moon next. The kiddo worries that Mi-young will find out that he left, but hey, that can be easily solved: Goo-tak removes his ankle bracelet and puts it in the drawer next to the bed. Lol. Goo-tak has already called Cha Jin-man, who arrives promptly. Jung-moon is to see whether he recognizes him. And he does! He remembers something! Oh, but when Cha Jin-man recognizes Jung-moon, his face turns pale ... and he tries to bolt. Psycho catches him though and starts beating him up on the backseat, until the panicked man spurts out that he did it at Doctor Kim's orders! Oh.
I keep wondering about the logistics of that beat-down. The man is lying on the back seat, with Jung Moon looming over him. Most adult men I know are longer than a back seat; where were his legs? Jung Moon is tall, his legs would have been sticking out the door for sure if he was on his knees, and he looked like he was standing and bent over. What was he hitting? The man's GROIN? And Goo Tak closed the door. Where did their legs go?
bcook: kdrama logistics. Don't question it, there are enough things to wonder about.
Dr. Kim hired Cha Jin-man exclusively three years ago - to drive Psycho to places after "his sessions were over". Huuuuuh. Wherever Psycho wanted to stop, Jin-man stopped. The three of them are on their way to the psychiatric clinic at which he was treated. They step inside and Jung-moon remembers being there, going there with another person. A person in a black suit? Hmmmm ... On they walk into the Doctor's office. Only... it's a different doctor. Where is Doctor Kim?
Oooh, NOT amnesia. HypNOsis!
bcook: Ok. Guys. I think we should at this point stop and acknowledge my absolute genius. I should become a writer-nim for this show. Did I not suggest hypnosis as a possibility in episode 7 recap? SEE HERE ! *bows*
Mi-young goes to the Serial Killer's memorial and then makes a phone call to Commissioner Nam. She has another thing to add to what he said about the master who won't die because his dog bit him: if that dog runs away from home, it'll find another master. Nooooo! Don't do iiiit! Tell me she's just doing it to expose Oh?! Yes? Yes?? I'd choose Commissioner Nam 1000000000 times over this slimy smirky ass! But no: she meets him and it's a deal. If he is her running mate (and doesn't just watch from the sidelines).
Bait and switch, I'm telling you. She's in this with Nam and Goo Tak, and THIS guy was the guy they were after all along. You watch. Well, that's what this would be in an American movie, anyway. Who knows with KDrama. I'm not up on my KDrama crime shows.
bcook: I second. It's a double agent play. She's going to expose both of them. Just watch. See people! this is why  (following the dog analogy) you let your dog find the toy every once in a while, why you feed it steak or let it play in the mud without letting it feel bad.
First, Mi-young visits Woong-chul in prison (nice to see you after 47 minutes!) to ask him who wanted Jung-moon dead. That, said Prosecutor Oh earlier, is the biggest crack in the Special Investigation Unit. Finding the truth will make it crumble. Ok this part doesn't fit with my theory, though. Because in that theory, Hot Prosecutor should be the guy who wants him dead. Or maybe he just wants her to think that somebody else wants him dead? As we know, Woong-chul doesn't know who wants Jung-moon killed, but he remembers something of importance: his gangster young mentioned that "his daughter" was a victim in that serial killer case. Tae-soo (heeeelllooooooo, I missed you!!!) tells her he was first commissioned 2 years ago to kill Jung-moon. He doesn't know by whom, but he sure knows who the contact was. (by the way, do we know why Tae-soo never DID kill Jung-moon 2 years ago?) The baduk player! Park Jun cheol. 
Well, if we go with your belief that Tae Soo turned himself in because he grew a soul after killing Lady Love's husband, it makes no sense that he would then continue on killing people. I'm not entirely convinced that was it, yet, because we saw him at the funeral, unbloody.  Yet when he turned himself into the police, he was bloody and had the weapon.
After questioning both the baduk player and Du-kwang about the one that gave the hit-order, Mi-young knows that it was a family member of someone who was killed in that case. And smirky ass Prosecutor goes and tells another Prosecutor to confiscate every single file about ... Oh Goo-tak. What the ... Goo-tak's ex-partner, whom we met earlier, is told to come and talk to the Prosecutors a bit.
Oh for crying out loud, Mi Young, do you not see what's being done here?
bcook: Nope, because she's smart and ambitious. Nam was right about her.

Goo-tak and Jung-moon have arrived at Doctor Kim's secluded house. In the courtyard, Jung-moon finds a smashed picture of the Doctor and remembers another episode, in which he got a pill from said doctor. In real life, when Doctor Kim sees who came to visit him, he bolts and runs. Seems to be a common reaction to seeing Jung-moon's face! They give chase, but Jung-moon's wound starts bleeding again. After a second or two of hard thinking, Goo-tak continues running alone. He takes a different route and jumps on the fleeing Doctor. Appearing behind him as well: Jung-moon. Who pulls out his tazer! And asks Goo-tak why he followed him the other night before he tazers him. Jung-moon saw Goo-tak's reflection in a shop window when he aimed straight at his head. Since he cannot trust Goo-tak anymore, he'll go look for the truth himself.
Did anyone else note the reaction when the doctor spoke to Jung Moon at first? His attitude changed completely. I immediately thought that it was a trigger phrase and that Jung Moon was now operating under influence.
bcook: Such a daft move Jung-Moon. Bet Goo-tak was wishing he'd kept the tracker on eh?  I don't understand why he couldn't have just called Mi-Young and been like... "I'm going somewhere with Jung Moon. If you see his tracker move that's why." Yeah she'll be suspicious but she doesn't trust you anyways so what does it matter? *sigh* writer-nim's logic.
That involves dragging the Doctor along, only to find that he has stuck a needle full of a narcotic into Jung-moon's leg. He has been expecting him. And he is the one that did it. Jung-moon collapses.
Although this doesn't fit very well with that.
bcook: Did what? See! There has to be something much bigger going on.
Goo-tak walks to the church and has a rage fit. Then he cries. And then he laughs. Mi-young comes in and waits respectfully until she asks whether the one who murdered Goo-tak's daughter was Jung-moon. Goo-tak doesn't answer, but he doesn't need to anyway. It is impressive how he did all this to bring the murderer of his daughter closer to him, says the woman. And she now knows how they're all connected (tell uuuuuus!). But she needs to hear one thing from him. The person who ordered all these hits on Jung-moon ... was it him? Was it Oh Goo-tak? There's no yes coming from Goo-tak's lips ... but a smile. A sad, victorious smile. 
FUCK. Really? No. This is stuuuuuuuuuuupid.
bcook: No no. That was a sad "aight this shit ironic" smile. Coz Goo-tak just lost his daughter's killer remember? Would he really have been so elaborate just to lose Jung-Moon at the final hour? My vote is on an even more complicated episode 9.

Comments

Fuuuuuuuuuuck. Goo-tak, you bastard. And: couldn't you have done it any other, easier way?! No, no, I don't mind that I watched 8 episodes of a show just to find out that it's some craaaaaazy shit revenge drama. Anyway, we need to watch on to find out more about the truth! There's more! MOAR!
Either there's more and I'm happy, or there's not and I curse Park Hae Jin for his misleading little interview where he said he wouldn't have done it if it wasn't on cable because only on cable could the story be good.
bcook: Either way... the story is good. There are so many loose ends just flapping. 5 more episodes to go and it seems like for every question answered... 25 more pop up. The doctor expecting Jung-moon means he was messed with in some way. Prosecutor Oh has more than one motive. Goo-tak thought he knew something that made him (kinda, sorta) believe Jung-moon didn't do it and Nam....Nam really likes dog analogies.
I thought we only had one more episode and I was in total despair of getting a cohesive ending out of this story. Now I'm happier.
This has 11 episodes though. 3 more.