Heartless City (Moojung Doshi) - Episode 18 (A SqueeCap)
JoAnne: The stakes are being raised, the guyliner is being troweled on, the insults and passes and confirmations of betrayal are flying... Next week is going to be nuts. So let's enjoy this episode for the crazy that it is, and prepare for a week of tortured suffering while we wait. Uri Baksa deserves no less from us.
Episode 18
JoAnne: We pick up where we left off: our handsome, handsome, HANDSOME hero is struggling in both literal and figurative dark as he tries to deny his desire to call Soo Min, the light of his life. He gives in, and Skinny Legs eventually picks up, too. These poor kids. They just can't ever catch a break. Her phone doesn't have any cute names for him anymore. He's just Jung Shi Hyun.
Shuk: That was a really subtle, poignant shot of the phone that spells out their relationship.
kakashi: Alas, Soo-min's rug is so ugly I couldn't really focus on anything else. This must be the special sheep pasture edition from Ikea, Änfår. Tsts, the product placement these days ...
JoAnne: She asks who's calling, which I think is odd since she knows who is calling, but when he answers that it's Baksa Adeul, I get it, and my heart breaks right along with hers. And his. He tells her to go ahead and ask that question she'd mentioned, and she does... and he doesn't answer it, but tells her to get away before she gets killed. I do not get this. It's KILLING him that she thinks this. Why does he not tell her the truth? He warns her away in a way that makes it seem like he's admitting that he DID kill Kyung Mi. I do not understand.
Shuk: He's told everyone else no, but maybe to the one person he loves, he can't say that because of that small, niggling doubt that he IS responsible for the bullet that ended his noona's life. He and his Cro-magnon counterpart are very much alike in this, I think.
kakashi: *sigh* ... KDrama logic. "Logic". Yeah, he feels responsible for that girl's death and thus, he will remain silent. *double sigh of annoyance*. But at least he suffers prettily.
JoAnne: And then...and then...and then he thinks better of his decision and OMG he moves to open her bedroom door. In KYUNG MI'S house. He's in her HOUSE with her. Tell me this man doesn't feel something strong for this woman. I will knock you down, probably by swinging at you with her ridiculous legs. Anyway...Soo Min makes this animal noise of pain, and he doesn't go in. He stands there for a minute listening to a person's heart break, and then he just leaves. I die.
Shuk: [sobbing quietly at the dining room table over her fried chicken.]
kakashi: Fine, fine, it is touching and all ... but HOW did he get there that fast? Can he fly? Is he Batman?
Shuk Didn't Huey Lewis and The News say it best? Better than Celine Dion, for sure.
JoAnne: Major mood swing alert: We shift immediately to Jin Sook and Soo at the Pleasure Palace, continuing their weird new flirtation. I notice that he looks a bit like Yunho, which is not a bad thing, but surprises me. He's better though. Yunho is a bit of a mouth breather.
Shuk: That little eyebrow raise made me squeal. It's fun to watch these two, since they both know the barnyard dance so well.
kakashi: I'm a bit in love with them both - and I am shipping them really, really hard. I hope they'll get some happy time before they die.
JoAnne: Min the Faithless Fuck tells Baksa that he's worried about Safari having Jo. Safari takes Jin Sook on an ice cream date. This guy. I just feel bad for him, these days. Jin Sook makes it abundantly clear that all she cares about is staying next to Baksa. Are we EVER going to find out whether she's actually romantically interested in him?
Shuk: The ice cream brings me back to the scene in a previous episode when the three of them were together. I know they all but said goodbye last epi, but I still can't help but think that Safari wants them in his court. Maybe he envies that Jin-sook has Baksa's back no matter what? He really doesn't have that security now, and less likely to have it in the future.
kakashi: I think Jin-sook is a bit harsh with poor Safari. He really hasn't killed anyone important, right? By the way, has everybody just simply forgotten that he was exposed as an undercover agent? They're all: fine, fine, he may have been a cop, but since cops in the Baksaverse are so incompetent, we do not care?
JoAnne: When Jin Sook gets back to her place, Baksa is waiting for her. She tells him that Safari has Jo - which he knows already - and he says he has to get Jo back. Which... puzzles me, but whatever.
Shuk: Psycho Jo is the key to Pusan, he's thinking. I don't think he knows just yet that Elder Ji has voted the Chairman off the island.
kakashi: X takes Y prisoner while Z is in danger, but Baksa comes and gets them all out. A quick summary of the last 10 episodes.
JoAnne: You forgot to add this: And every body looks damn good doing it, too.
JoAnne: Back to Jo tied up in Safari's Ugly Room. Jo is really good at pushing Safari's buttons, fat-faced evil little shit that he is, but when he learns that he's now considered dispensable by Ji and Cha his face is really hilarious. I expect he's got a plan for that but it seems Safari has his own agenda, offering Jo safe haven and looking for dirt on Daddy Ji.
Shuk: I liked how the old toad could spin up Safari just like Safari spun up the detectives. Is Safari still in cop mode? I find it far-fetched but not impossible. And did you notice a lack of ugly shirt on Safari?
kakashi: This scene is called "The Great Fumble":
JoAnne: I did laugh at this and wonder if it was an NG that they just decided to roll with.
JoAnne: Next thing, Baksa shows up at Safari's Ugly Palace and tries to convince him they should go after Jo together. Safari shares that he assumed Baksa had been sent to kill him by Min. Baksa's face makes it clear that he's suddenly realizing that was a possibility, and Safari simply says 'If you aren't going to kill me, just go and live in peace with Jin Sook.' These guys just do not want to hate each other, and I hate Min more by the minute.
Shuk: He may not be the elder, but it's clear he is a Chess Master. He should have gotten a paper cut and died of sepsis when he ripped up his award in the beginning.
kakashi: Does Baksa finally get it? That Min is bad? Or does he need two more episodes?
JoAnne: Jin Sook and Cutie Soo are together again, and Soo makes the most straightforward pass ever: Are you still sleeping with Safari? How about sleeping with me? No? Why, is there something between you and Baksa? At which point Baksa walks in. He heard the exchange and pauses for a minute, but then he acts like nothing happened. We know he's not into Jin Sook in that way, and if he was going to be into anyone it would be Soo Min - but I wonder if he wouldn't object to his noona gettin' banged by his buddy, all the same.
Shuk: I think he would be happy for them both, since he wants all his humans to be content. Plus, I've been wondering if Jin-sook was looking to hook Soo-min and Baksa together, since Emu-legs is her chosen protege and she knows she can't have Baksa. Can you picture Jin-sook as an SK Yenta?
kakashi: When they have their lovers' tryst, I am going to join them. I just decided that. All the better if Baksa joins in as well.
Shuk: O.O
JoAnne: (*o*)
JoAnne: We now have absolute confirmation that Wooden Stick, the Creepy Boy, lost a finger, not his hand, and that it probably hurts a lot. Also, this guy is not all there. Do Hoon blabs to Soo that Stick is about to talk, and Safari tells Daddy Ji that he's got the location now. Daddy Ji wants Safari to finish off Jo and Safari looks a bit surprised. Do gangsters have a professional code of ethics in Korea or something? They're always so shocked at being instructed to kill someone.
Shuk: Ji has already offered the Chairman's position to Safari, so the surprise is...er...surprising.
kakashi: Everybody talks to everybody else. I like that. And each couple has their favorite information exchange location: church, cinema, Japanese restaurant, rooftop .... not enough rooftops.
JoAnne: The Ahn doll shows up at Soo Min's house and sees the Wall of Revenge. Nam Gyu Ri tries really hard to channel Baksa but fails miserably and just seems like she woke up from a really hard nap when she tells her friend to pretend she didn't see it. Which friend very reasonably points out that um, that would be impossible, since she's connected to it. So yeah, this is going to be bad. And I'm just saying, but it could have happened at any point.
Shuk: Just like a war movie where the soldier that shows somebody the picture of his sweetheart is the next to die, I think Show just put a big old bulls-eye on Doll's back. She's expendable and personally connected. Bummer for Baksa's chauffeur.
kakashi: Really smart move to place the Wall of Revenge in the living room where everybody can see it.
JoAnne: So she DID attend the Police Academy, then.
JoAnne: Next, zombie Soo Min goes to the Police Lair, where she meets up with Hyung Min and also has a bit of a chat with Reporter Cha where she basically gives her blessing for the Ji-Cha union. And then she steals a gun and leaves, but we don't learn that until a bit later. I'll tell you what I thought: I thought she turned on the Magical Lipstick and left it there, and that thought had me giggling with joy.
Shuk: Sooo, the stick figure that just dumped her guy for nonproven rumors tells DeadBoringUnni's ex-lover to hold on to the one who is good to you? [Cutie-soo eyebrow raise]. And police officers never take off their pieces unless they are securing them in a lockbox. (Sorry, I can stay quiet about this one.)
kakashi: Goodness, I KNEW there had to be a reason Neanderthal was always wearing his gun holsters. a) to look hawt; b) to have them stolen.
JoAnne: Sticks for Brains is talking now in the interrogation room. He gives up the drug production facility so now we have the police headed there. Of course, Ahn calls his boss, Daddy Ji, who is yet again eating at the Japanese Restaurant of Doom with Congressman Cha. Meanwhile, Do Hoon is sharing the news with Cutie Soo. Can I get a third cutaway with Yang calling Min? Any other blabbers out there I forgot?
Shuk: I think I saw it posted on my FaceBook page too. Wait, my IPhone is buzzing a SMS...
kakashi: Can Babyface die already? Or may we cut off more pieces?
JoAnne: Let's Review: Jo tells Safari it's Bogam; Stick tells the cops it's Bogam; Do Hoon tells Cutie Soo it's Bogam; Ahn tells Daddy Ji it's Bogam...but he's a stand offish kind of guy, so he'll just tell Cha his evil plan and in the telling, convince all of us that he's probably the worst of the 'good' guys. (He's using Safari to take down Jo, and if Safari is a problem, he has Baksa Adeul lined up for a turn, and we already know he intends to promote Min high and then bring him down hard. That last, actually, I could support.) So much for a good man with compromised morals. He's the worst (not counting the actual perverts like Jo and Son.) Maybe. Could still be Min That Fuck. All I know at this point is that the drug facility is pretty much guaranteed not to be Bogam Pharmaceuticals.
Shuk: Abso.F'kng.Lutley on the nose.
kakashi: Insert random Cutie-Soo pic. X-Large. Hey, I just realize I have absolutely no clue what this guy's real name is.
JoAnne: Hyun Soo. We were talking about it on Twitter the other night, that no one even uses his real name, ever. He is Cutie to the twitterverse.
JoAnne: Now it's Baksa's turn at the Japanese restaurant and I laugh because when Ji says that soon Jo's facility will be exposed to the world, Baksa is confused. He says he thought that Ji WANTED the facility - and Ji has to ask him if he remembers what Ji actually does for a living. Then Ji goes on to say that everything will be fine going forward, because he'll just ignore Baksa's facility. Yep. Slime. My poor ThighBaby. Baksa looks like he just figured something out, though.
Shuk: And, yunno, just a side note, but is it really smart to do most of your covert conversations about illegal activities at a business with rice paper walls? That's been bothering me from the beginning. Oh yeah, and Daddy Ji sucks eggs.
kakashi: Yeah, what does he do for a living? Sit around in cinemas and Japanese restaurants, plotting evil stuff? I want that job!!!
Shuk: He's the Chief Prosecutor for the Busan area, so he just needs to stare out a window and look inscrutable. Oh, and destroy people's lives for power.
JoAnne: Thighs is talking to his college buddy, who mentions that the prosecutor's office is also heading toward Bogam. This puzzles Thighs although I fail to see why, but no matter, because it helps Thighs figure out that this is bogus info. And in the Bak Cave, Baksa has clearly figured out the same. *swoons* it's proof that Thighs and Baksa belong together, as far as I'm concerned.
Shuk: Hey, They've already rubbed butts together... [giggle]
kakashi: It's the blue-yellow rock band gathering again:
JoAnne: Oh but it gets BETTER. Baksa and Safari talk - Baksa warns Safari away from the trap but our wily guy knew that long ago and just says that Jo was really underestimated by the Prosecutor's Office. He wants to know what Baksa would do if Safari took Jo's place - but then again, he figures Min would never allow that. Baksa looks a bit thunderstruck at the roundabout admission that Safari knows the real deal, and then Safari *sniff* Safari tells Baksa he'll text him the real drug location, and asks him for back up because he's the only one Safari can trust now. *sniffs again* I just do not think that Safari is going to betray Baksa here. I just do not. Shut UP, kittehs in my head. Side note: All the men are in blue today at the Bak Cave, and Jin Sook provides a nice counterpoint in her butter-yellow dress.
Shuk: See my previous note. Safari has little loyalty around him, above or below, but he knows from long-standing that Baska is a straight arrow in his dealings. Safari can trust Baksa, but that's no guarantee that Safari won't betray the younger man in the end. Sorry, unni, we differ on this one. Especially since Safari called him Shi-hyun-a because he knows it's a weakness.
kakashi: Yeah, Baksa isn't feeling all too comfortable about being found out. But not because Safari knows, because he fears Cutie Soo and Jin-sook might find out. I do wonder how they will react when they in fact do. Unless they die first, which is possible. Even likely. Next week is going to be a bloodfest!
JoAnne: Baksa heads off alone, followed by Soo Min in one car and his driver in another. Hmm. Hyung Min heads off alone, but is interrupted by Detective Suh who is now his most loyal operative. She tells him (despite orders) that Min has headed off to the site with the Ineptness Squad. I sigh as he realizes he put on his shoulder holster without a gun in it, because gee, don't you think he would have realized it didn't have a gun in it when he put it on?
Shuk: I can't even say anything without it being vituperative and angry and redundant about this police scene.
kakashi: Insert random Baksa picture.
JoAnne: It should have been a shirtless one. I have a dim memory of a couple delightful views of his torso. You realize that did that just to suck us in, right?
JoAnne: Thighs calls Soo Min and tries to persuade her that Baksa is not the guy she's after, but she's convinced that they've both just been fooled by him. He has the One Sniper Rifle in Existence, after all. Hyung Min is swayed by this news but he thinks back over their meetings and *swoon* he believes in Baksa. More proof of The Bromance That Must Be!!! He tries to call Soo Min back but she's already cut off connection. I feel impending doom.
Shuk: Neanderthal has realized Baksa is the other undercover agent. Some cells are firing under all that bird-nest! Still, damn him for putting unfounded ideas in his dongsaeng's head.
kakashi: Not sure he is there yet. The braincells do struggle in there, though.
Shuk: I betting on this logic: "A police-issued weapon killed BabyMama. Baksa has one, but didn't kill her. Ergo, he must bleed blue too." Of course, the key weakness is the word 'logic'.
JoAnne: Well I know he realizes Baksa ain't no ordinary man but hell, we all know that too. He's just jumping on the long, long, LONG train to Baksaville.
JoAnne: Sure enough, the Ineptness Squad shows up at some random brick building with SWAT and all, but only find a bunch of Matrix-Agent-like clones in black suits and the same tie. They all look really surprised to see each other, like the dudes in black just normally hang out all day in empty garages armed with pipes waiting for people to come through the door, just not THESE people. Whatever. Ahn tells Ji they've been tricked. I'm not sure what to make of Ji's facial response.
kakashi: Here, I cheered on the Neanderthal to finally kill Babyface. Alas ...
JoAnne: Elsewhere, Safari, Eun Soo, Meth Kim, and Jo arrive at - a college campus? Jo's been making drugs on a college campus. Ok, this is THE most HALF-ASSED representation of a big-time drug production facility that I have ever seen. Not to mention the fact that if it's Jo's facility, why is it that Meth Kim and Safari have to bust their way in? Which is not as dramatic as it sounds because really they just kick the guards in the chest as they go by, and no one ever even bats an eye. Maybe the guards were mean and the drug workers hated them. But then they are much meaner to the guards in Jo's office when they break in there, but again I am left wondering: it's JO'S OFFICE. That's Jo. What's the problem?
Shuk: I dunno, without a jacket he just looks like every other out of work executive in SK? It was laughable that Chairman Jo had more goons protecting him while he ate steak than the goons protecting his power and money base of operations. And you need a lot of refrigeration and cooling equipment for large scale meth manufacturing, not cardboard boxes and white plastic containers. Oh and a lone propane tank? Chincha, Show?!
kakashi: Hahaha, I really liked this factory. It was so ... simple.
Shuk: Here's a meth lab made out of Legos:
JoAnne: Why. WHY, GOD, WHY?
JoAnne: But wait. What's this? The police are arriving outside - wait for it - the right building! How could that be? Inside, Jo hands Safari proof of the corruption in city hall, and then a minion comes running with the news. Safari sends them all off but stays behind. Predictably, Eun Soo-lite wants her man to stick close. While Safari stacks 55-gallon drums in a smoke-filled room, Jo's men beat on Meth Kim and Eun Soo in a hallway and Jo gets away. As Safari is processing that bit of bad news, Min the Faithless steps out of whatever slimy rat-infested corner he was hiding in and pulls a gun on Safari.
Shuk: I'm stepping out for a beer and some gyoza. I'll come back when the "It's Making Sense Again" light comes back on.
kakashi: Min, you fucker. DIE!
JoAnne: Aaaaaaaaand flashback! Safari and Min meet by the river and there's not a lot of subtext or animosity in this conversation..so I guess it's before the 'betrayal' Min always talks about. Turns out Safari really did care about the young Baksa Adeul, and lying to the kid makes him feel bad. Min That Fuck tells him that certainly some day he'll be able to come clean - and then Safari hands him all the details on Jo and Jo's production facility. WHAT? This is like....15 years ago! Oddly...Min doesn't seem to care too much. He's more interested in whatever Safari might have uncovered about the drug ring's connection to government/political powers.
kakashi: That was the most random flashback ever.
JoAnne: In the present, Min demands the info Jo just handed to Safari. I'm a little confused, I think. I assumed that the cops knew about this place because Hyung Min finally did the right thing and called for back up...but then I realized that it's only Baksa and Safari who knew the right place. Hyung Min just knew that the other place was the wrong place. Did Baksa call Min? That doesn't seem right. Safari's cool, though. He just wants to know if Min realizes that Baksa is there, too. This rattles Min, and then we get to see the lovely man himself strolling calmly along a smoke-darkened corridor.
JoAnne: Soo Min the Mistaken is outside blending into the other students, and inside, Safari is confirming what we've known for a long time: Min is a complete asshole. Safari shows him the chip that contains the info Min has ruined several lives to obtain and then uses the distraction to try and wrestle the gun away. Min loses his gun, and then Safari pulls his own and does his patented 'I shoot in your direction to show my displeasure, not that I would ever actually hurt you.' then walks away. So of course Min Who is Dead to Me shoots him in the kidney.
Shuk: Dammit, all the betrayals are just piling up like cordwood. Until now, I didn't think Min was THAT much of an asshat. And why shoot him and walk away, especially when (it is supposed) that Safari still has the jump drive.
kakashi: Wow, JoAnne, you know anatomy well ... is that the location of the kidney?
JoAnne: Roughly, yes. I always thought they were up front with all the pee apparatus but no, a movie about boxing - could have just been a movie with a fight in it, I think, though - kidneys are punched in the lower back.
JoAnne: Safari still tries to just walk away, because even a rogue undercover cop with violent tendencies and a penchant for drug dealing is a better man than you, Min! Min The Fuck shoots him again, and Safari staggers off into the smoky gloom. I don't see how Safari lives through the end of this, and I'm telling you now I'm going to take his death pretty hard.
Shuk: Poor samchoon Duk-bae.
kakashi: Hey, others have survived shots to the head, with brain matter leaking out. Safari isn't dead yet. He may get amnesia though.
Shuk: Or cancer.
JoAnne: Maybe he finds out he's the OTHER twin, the one who never went rogue at all and was adopted by a chaebol family.
JoAnne: Safari and Baksa meet up, and Safari downplays his injuries to encourage Baksa to go after Jo, who has run up to the roof. God knows why. It's like the stupidest place ever to hide, and anyone who's ever watched tv knows this, but it happens all the time anyway. In this case I'm glad because I want Jo dead. And rooftop looks good on Baksa, who isn't far behind.
JoAnne: Baksa sneaks up on the door but then walks past a potential hiding space without a second thought - except there's a look on his face that says maybe he knows anyway. This guy thinks on his feet too often. It's killing me. Which is fine if it doesn't kill HIM. Yeah, he totally knew.
Shuk: It's dead end time for Psycho Jo. Unless he gets arrested again, in which case it's a free taxi ride back to downtown Seoul.
kakashi: Okay, it needs to be said: I don't want the Chairman to die (yet). He is one of my favorite characters.
JoAnne: Is anyone else annoyed by Jo's posture? He sticks his stomach out. At the point of a gun, he offers Baksa a deal: help him get away and he'll give him the drug facility. When Baksa doesn't seem enthused, Jo tells him not to worry that the facility has been discovered, because he can always build another. Ok yes, but he could do that WITHOUT saving your wretched ass, too. He takes the deal though, and surmises that it will only end when Jo is dead. He steps toward Jo.
Shuk: Baksa's beautiful mind has already come up with something, to be sure. He's got to know his bromance buddy is nearby. After all, I'm sure the college facility location was accidentally ticker-taped across the screens at KOSDAQ in Busan.
kakashi: He looks great, JoAnne, I don't know what your problem is. Ageism, maybe? I remember you also really hated our purple grandpa over at WAML.
JoAnne: But not for being old, Kakashi - for being an ASS.
JoAnne: Jo threatens to shoot him, but Baksa points out all the reasons why he won't. And then Soo Min comes out of the stairwell and points her even bigger gun at the back of Jo's head, much to Baksa's surprise. Jo would be surprised too, but she clocks him good and he's passed out.
Shuk: In spite of your hope, JoAnne, I don't think we are going to see any angry make-up sex on that rooftop. Besides, that gun looked bigger than she is - how could she even lift it?
kakashi: Ah. The girl tries hard. I'll give her that.
JoAnne: On to the business at hand: she tearfully demands to know why Baksa killed her sister and as they stand there staring painfully at each other, we cut away to a fucking sniper on a roof. It doesn't sound like Do Hoon. The gunsight moves from Baksa to Soo Min - what is it this sniper has with keeping women away from Baksa Adeul? Was he hired by Jin Sook?
Shuk: It's got to be someone already introduced in this show: has Halibut been hiding on rooftops all this time? I can't even remember what he looks like. Chief Yang is too short, plus wrong hair. Jin-sook's major domo? Too fat. Prosecutor Ahn? No freaking way. I dunno, maybe it was the convenience store sexual-harassing manager.
kakashi: It's Cutie Soo! Cause he's in love with Baksa and hired by Min, who is also in love with Baksa, to kill everybody that points a gun at him!
JoAnne: We cut away to a full view of the back of the sniper and I think to myself that Do Hoon didn't have on black pants earlier. I go back to check, and I was right. So I think you all are wrong about who the sniper is, but that's no real help because I don't exactly have other options to suggest in place of Do Hoon. Hey...the driver did follow Baksa, remember? But this guy has different hair and seems taller. Shit.
Shuk: Well, we just have to wait a week, dammit.
kakashi: No longer a week, haha. There is indeed merit in posting these things so late ...
JoAnne: We end the episode with Baksa clearly struggling with Soo Min's question. Why can he not just tell her the truth?
Shuk: I almost spilled my beer yelling at the screen, "TELL HER NO, YOU IDIOT!"
kakashi: While I went: "SHOOOOOOT! SHOOOOOOT! SHOOOOOT ALREADY!"
JoAnne: I just laughed at the Jo-actor for having to lie there very still on what must have been a very hot roof.
Final Thoughts:
JoAnne: Seems like Daddy Ji is the real chessmaster here, but he still doesn't seem like the BOSS of everything. Maybe there isn't that one guy. Maybe it's a committee of corruption with no real head, just an uneasy truce among strange bedfellows. You know what they say about politics, after all.
Shuk: I was leaning towards a Triumverate of power-sharing myself, but even in Roman times one of the leaders was just a tad more powerful than the rest. Daddy Ji stood out in this one, and it makes more of an impact to have the daddy of a straight-laced cop be the Big Bad than the daddy of a crybaby reporter. Just saying.
kakashi: You haven't learned your lesson, ladies. It's not about the person - it is about the position. And once you're in, you're in. What that means is ... who cares about who the Big Bad is. Are we betting on who dies next, by the way? Have I asked before? Oh, I think I have ...
JoAnne: Next to die - hmm... I'm going with Cute Driver.
Shuk: I'm going for either Psycho Jo or Ahn Doll.
JoAnne: We pick up where we left off: our handsome, handsome, HANDSOME hero is struggling in both literal and figurative dark as he tries to deny his desire to call Soo Min, the light of his life. He gives in, and Skinny Legs eventually picks up, too. These poor kids. They just can't ever catch a break. Her phone doesn't have any cute names for him anymore. He's just Jung Shi Hyun.
Shuk: That was a really subtle, poignant shot of the phone that spells out their relationship.
kakashi: Alas, Soo-min's rug is so ugly I couldn't really focus on anything else. This must be the special sheep pasture edition from Ikea, Änfår. Tsts, the product placement these days ...
Shuk: He's told everyone else no, but maybe to the one person he loves, he can't say that because of that small, niggling doubt that he IS responsible for the bullet that ended his noona's life. He and his Cro-magnon counterpart are very much alike in this, I think.
kakashi: *sigh* ... KDrama logic. "Logic". Yeah, he feels responsible for that girl's death and thus, he will remain silent. *double sigh of annoyance*. But at least he suffers prettily.
Shuk: [sobbing quietly at the dining room table over her fried chicken.]
kakashi: Fine, fine, it is touching and all ... but HOW did he get there that fast? Can he fly? Is he Batman?
Shuk Didn't Huey Lewis and The News say it best? Better than Celine Dion, for sure.
Shuk: That little eyebrow raise made me squeal. It's fun to watch these two, since they both know the barnyard dance so well.
kakashi: I'm a bit in love with them both - and I am shipping them really, really hard. I hope they'll get some happy time before they die.
Shuk: The ice cream brings me back to the scene in a previous episode when the three of them were together. I know they all but said goodbye last epi, but I still can't help but think that Safari wants them in his court. Maybe he envies that Jin-sook has Baksa's back no matter what? He really doesn't have that security now, and less likely to have it in the future.
kakashi: I think Jin-sook is a bit harsh with poor Safari. He really hasn't killed anyone important, right? By the way, has everybody just simply forgotten that he was exposed as an undercover agent? They're all: fine, fine, he may have been a cop, but since cops in the Baksaverse are so incompetent, we do not care?
Shuk: Psycho Jo is the key to Pusan, he's thinking. I don't think he knows just yet that Elder Ji has voted the Chairman off the island.
kakashi: X takes Y prisoner while Z is in danger, but Baksa comes and gets them all out. A quick summary of the last 10 episodes.
JoAnne: You forgot to add this: And every body looks damn good doing it, too.
Shuk: I liked how the old toad could spin up Safari just like Safari spun up the detectives. Is Safari still in cop mode? I find it far-fetched but not impossible. And did you notice a lack of ugly shirt on Safari?
kakashi: This scene is called "The Great Fumble":
JoAnne: I did laugh at this and wonder if it was an NG that they just decided to roll with.
Shuk: He may not be the elder, but it's clear he is a Chess Master. He should have gotten a paper cut and died of sepsis when he ripped up his award in the beginning.
kakashi: Does Baksa finally get it? That Min is bad? Or does he need two more episodes?
Shuk: I think he would be happy for them both, since he wants all his humans to be content. Plus, I've been wondering if Jin-sook was looking to hook Soo-min and Baksa together, since Emu-legs is her chosen protege and she knows she can't have Baksa. Can you picture Jin-sook as an SK Yenta?
kakashi: When they have their lovers' tryst, I am going to join them. I just decided that. All the better if Baksa joins in as well.
Shuk: O.O
JoAnne: (*o*)
Shuk: Ji has already offered the Chairman's position to Safari, so the surprise is...er...surprising.
kakashi: Everybody talks to everybody else. I like that. And each couple has their favorite information exchange location: church, cinema, Japanese restaurant, rooftop .... not enough rooftops.
Shuk: Just like a war movie where the soldier that shows somebody the picture of his sweetheart is the next to die, I think Show just put a big old bulls-eye on Doll's back. She's expendable and personally connected. Bummer for Baksa's chauffeur.
kakashi: Really smart move to place the Wall of Revenge in the living room where everybody can see it.
JoAnne: So she DID attend the Police Academy, then.
Shuk: Sooo, the stick figure that just dumped her guy for nonproven rumors tells DeadBoringUnni's ex-lover to hold on to the one who is good to you? [Cutie-soo eyebrow raise]. And police officers never take off their pieces unless they are securing them in a lockbox. (Sorry, I can stay quiet about this one.)
kakashi: Goodness, I KNEW there had to be a reason Neanderthal was always wearing his gun holsters. a) to look hawt; b) to have them stolen.
Shuk: I think I saw it posted on my FaceBook page too. Wait, my IPhone is buzzing a SMS...
kakashi: Can Babyface die already? Or may we cut off more pieces?
Shuk: Abso.F'kng.Lutley on the nose.
kakashi: Insert random Cutie-Soo pic. X-Large. Hey, I just realize I have absolutely no clue what this guy's real name is.
JoAnne: Hyun Soo. We were talking about it on Twitter the other night, that no one even uses his real name, ever. He is Cutie to the twitterverse.
Shuk: And, yunno, just a side note, but is it really smart to do most of your covert conversations about illegal activities at a business with rice paper walls? That's been bothering me from the beginning. Oh yeah, and Daddy Ji sucks eggs.
kakashi: Yeah, what does he do for a living? Sit around in cinemas and Japanese restaurants, plotting evil stuff? I want that job!!!
Shuk: He's the Chief Prosecutor for the Busan area, so he just needs to stare out a window and look inscrutable. Oh, and destroy people's lives for power.
Shuk: Hey, They've already rubbed butts together... [giggle]
kakashi: It's the blue-yellow rock band gathering again:
Shuk: See my previous note. Safari has little loyalty around him, above or below, but he knows from long-standing that Baska is a straight arrow in his dealings. Safari can trust Baksa, but that's no guarantee that Safari won't betray the younger man in the end. Sorry, unni, we differ on this one. Especially since Safari called him Shi-hyun-a because he knows it's a weakness.
kakashi: Yeah, Baksa isn't feeling all too comfortable about being found out. But not because Safari knows, because he fears Cutie Soo and Jin-sook might find out. I do wonder how they will react when they in fact do. Unless they die first, which is possible. Even likely. Next week is going to be a bloodfest!
Shuk: I can't even say anything without it being vituperative and angry and redundant about this police scene.
kakashi: Insert random Baksa picture.
JoAnne: It should have been a shirtless one. I have a dim memory of a couple delightful views of his torso. You realize that did that just to suck us in, right?
JoAnne: Thighs calls Soo Min and tries to persuade her that Baksa is not the guy she's after, but she's convinced that they've both just been fooled by him. He has the One Sniper Rifle in Existence, after all. Hyung Min is swayed by this news but he thinks back over their meetings and *swoon* he believes in Baksa. More proof of The Bromance That Must Be!!! He tries to call Soo Min back but she's already cut off connection. I feel impending doom.
Shuk: Neanderthal has realized Baksa is the other undercover agent. Some cells are firing under all that bird-nest! Still, damn him for putting unfounded ideas in his dongsaeng's head.
kakashi: Not sure he is there yet. The braincells do struggle in there, though.
Shuk: I betting on this logic: "A police-issued weapon killed BabyMama. Baksa has one, but didn't kill her. Ergo, he must bleed blue too." Of course, the key weakness is the word 'logic'.
JoAnne: Well I know he realizes Baksa ain't no ordinary man but hell, we all know that too. He's just jumping on the long, long, LONG train to Baksaville.
kakashi: Here, I cheered on the Neanderthal to finally kill Babyface. Alas ...
Shuk: I dunno, without a jacket he just looks like every other out of work executive in SK? It was laughable that Chairman Jo had more goons protecting him while he ate steak than the goons protecting his power and money base of operations. And you need a lot of refrigeration and cooling equipment for large scale meth manufacturing, not cardboard boxes and white plastic containers. Oh and a lone propane tank? Chincha, Show?!
kakashi: Hahaha, I really liked this factory. It was so ... simple.
Shuk: Here's a meth lab made out of Legos:
JoAnne: Why. WHY, GOD, WHY?
Shuk: I'm stepping out for a beer and some gyoza. I'll come back when the "It's Making Sense Again" light comes back on.
kakashi: Min, you fucker. DIE!
JoAnne: Aaaaaaaaand flashback! Safari and Min meet by the river and there's not a lot of subtext or animosity in this conversation..so I guess it's before the 'betrayal' Min always talks about. Turns out Safari really did care about the young Baksa Adeul, and lying to the kid makes him feel bad. Min That Fuck tells him that certainly some day he'll be able to come clean - and then Safari hands him all the details on Jo and Jo's production facility. WHAT? This is like....15 years ago! Oddly...Min doesn't seem to care too much. He's more interested in whatever Safari might have uncovered about the drug ring's connection to government/political powers.
kakashi: That was the most random flashback ever.
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| No, HERE's a random flashback memory! |
Shuk: Dammit, all the betrayals are just piling up like cordwood. Until now, I didn't think Min was THAT much of an asshat. And why shoot him and walk away, especially when (it is supposed) that Safari still has the jump drive.
kakashi: Wow, JoAnne, you know anatomy well ... is that the location of the kidney?
JoAnne: Roughly, yes. I always thought they were up front with all the pee apparatus but no, a movie about boxing - could have just been a movie with a fight in it, I think, though - kidneys are punched in the lower back.
Shuk: Poor samchoon Duk-bae.
kakashi: Hey, others have survived shots to the head, with brain matter leaking out. Safari isn't dead yet. He may get amnesia though.
Shuk: Or cancer.
JoAnne: Maybe he finds out he's the OTHER twin, the one who never went rogue at all and was adopted by a chaebol family.
JoAnne: Safari and Baksa meet up, and Safari downplays his injuries to encourage Baksa to go after Jo, who has run up to the roof. God knows why. It's like the stupidest place ever to hide, and anyone who's ever watched tv knows this, but it happens all the time anyway. In this case I'm glad because I want Jo dead. And rooftop looks good on Baksa, who isn't far behind.
JoAnne: Baksa sneaks up on the door but then walks past a potential hiding space without a second thought - except there's a look on his face that says maybe he knows anyway. This guy thinks on his feet too often. It's killing me. Which is fine if it doesn't kill HIM. Yeah, he totally knew.
Shuk: It's dead end time for Psycho Jo. Unless he gets arrested again, in which case it's a free taxi ride back to downtown Seoul.
kakashi: Okay, it needs to be said: I don't want the Chairman to die (yet). He is one of my favorite characters.
JoAnne: Is anyone else annoyed by Jo's posture? He sticks his stomach out. At the point of a gun, he offers Baksa a deal: help him get away and he'll give him the drug facility. When Baksa doesn't seem enthused, Jo tells him not to worry that the facility has been discovered, because he can always build another. Ok yes, but he could do that WITHOUT saving your wretched ass, too. He takes the deal though, and surmises that it will only end when Jo is dead. He steps toward Jo.
Shuk: Baksa's beautiful mind has already come up with something, to be sure. He's got to know his bromance buddy is nearby. After all, I'm sure the college facility location was accidentally ticker-taped across the screens at KOSDAQ in Busan.
kakashi: He looks great, JoAnne, I don't know what your problem is. Ageism, maybe? I remember you also really hated our purple grandpa over at WAML.
JoAnne: But not for being old, Kakashi - for being an ASS.
Shuk: In spite of your hope, JoAnne, I don't think we are going to see any angry make-up sex on that rooftop. Besides, that gun looked bigger than she is - how could she even lift it?
kakashi: Ah. The girl tries hard. I'll give her that.
Shuk: It's got to be someone already introduced in this show: has Halibut been hiding on rooftops all this time? I can't even remember what he looks like. Chief Yang is too short, plus wrong hair. Jin-sook's major domo? Too fat. Prosecutor Ahn? No freaking way. I dunno, maybe it was the convenience store sexual-harassing manager.
kakashi: It's Cutie Soo! Cause he's in love with Baksa and hired by Min, who is also in love with Baksa, to kill everybody that points a gun at him!
Shuk: Well, we just have to wait a week, dammit.
kakashi: No longer a week, haha. There is indeed merit in posting these things so late ...
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| I bought this one from snipers-r-us.com |
Shuk: I almost spilled my beer yelling at the screen, "TELL HER NO, YOU IDIOT!"
kakashi: While I went: "SHOOOOOOT! SHOOOOOOT! SHOOOOOT ALREADY!"
JoAnne: I just laughed at the Jo-actor for having to lie there very still on what must have been a very hot roof.
Final Thoughts:
JoAnne: Seems like Daddy Ji is the real chessmaster here, but he still doesn't seem like the BOSS of everything. Maybe there isn't that one guy. Maybe it's a committee of corruption with no real head, just an uneasy truce among strange bedfellows. You know what they say about politics, after all.
Shuk: I was leaning towards a Triumverate of power-sharing myself, but even in Roman times one of the leaders was just a tad more powerful than the rest. Daddy Ji stood out in this one, and it makes more of an impact to have the daddy of a straight-laced cop be the Big Bad than the daddy of a crybaby reporter. Just saying.
kakashi: You haven't learned your lesson, ladies. It's not about the person - it is about the position. And once you're in, you're in. What that means is ... who cares about who the Big Bad is. Are we betting on who dies next, by the way? Have I asked before? Oh, I think I have ...
JoAnne: Next to die - hmm... I'm going with Cute Driver.
Shuk: I'm going for either Psycho Jo or Ahn Doll.
