Can We Love? - Episode 16 (Recap)
Overall, this is a satisfactory episode. People get their power back and important decisions are made. The absolute highlight for me was the exposure of the MILDragon as the monster she actually is - and the whole getting-her-power-back thing for Ji-hyun. I am glad she got the character development she deserved ... we had to wait for it for too long!
Episode 16
Sun-mi, Yoon-Seok, and a bit of Jung-wan
We're back to the baby-confrontation in front of Sun-mi's house: Puppy Yoon-seok wants a genetic test, but Sun-mi lies to Puppy that it's definitely not his. He is not convinced, but what can he do? When she's inside and alone, tears well up in her eyes. I wish I could feel more sorry for you, but ... soon. Soon I'll be ready. Yes, the drama does indeed aim for rehabilitation of this dreadful character (of course), but like me, others in the drama are not quite ready to forgive yet. Sun-mi meets Jung-wan, several times. In one instance, she is deeply troubled about what lies ahead of her and she has nobody else but Jung-wan to talk to. She doesn't know whether to keep the baby or not - this is most likely her last chance to be a mother, but she also has no confidence to raise this baby by herself. Jung-wan doesn't offer any help or consolation, but just leaves the car without a word.
Puppy ... awwww, poor Puppy. He is a smart one and calls Sun-mi out, by telling her that he has also called Oh Kyung-soo out to clarify things. Look who's there in a nanosecond! He has his suspicion confirmed ... she has been lying to him. And finally, she admits that the baby is his. But she also adds that she wants nothing
to do with him. Isn't his girlfriend Hana? Come on, woman. What are you doing. He is the father - so he has a goddamn right to be involved! Well, Puppy acts pretty quickly on what she just told him - he breaks up with Hana. In my opinion, he should never have gotten involved with her, but that's another story. He waits in front of Sun-mi's house again and tells her that he has broken up with Hana. He wants to marry her (he even wants to give her all his money)! And he is convinced he will be a good husband and father. I don't know whether to laugh or to cry ... he is so earnest and ... so YOUNG. Not saying young people cannot be husbands and fathers, but he really is on a different planet than her.
Sun-mi keeps treating him badly, though (NOT OKAY) and dismisses him in the most brutal of ways, even though he cares for her all the time, bringing her food etc. And then, Sun-mi gets abdominal pains ... Oh no. No no no! After it has happened several times, she goes to the hospital. The next day, she calls Puppy (who is there again, waiting for her) into her car ... and she tells him that she had a miscarriage. And she says evil things like it's a good thing that happened, because they could never have been together anyway. He is immediately concerned for her again (shouldn't she lie down?) and it breaks my heart a little, because I'm pretty sure she is lying.
And yes ... she is. Seriously, if this drama wanted to make this woman more likable, it has failed! She meets Jung-wan in a café and she tells her that she will have the baby. Alone. She went to the hospital because of some bleeding, but the baby is fine. But she realized there that grabbing a man with the baby is wrong - so it's not marriage that will usher in her "second" life, but the baby.
Ji-hye, Gyu-shik, the MILDragon, and a bit of Ahn Do-young
Gyu-shik ... oh well. In this episode, he is again part horrible, part really pitiful. He presses ahead with the paternity case, now trying to get what he wants without his wife, who isn't signing the necessary documents. Of course, he frequently freaks out. Ji-hyun on the other hand ... YES, she finally takes things into her own hand! She goes to Sun-mi to talk about opening up a small shop - in which she wants to sell snack for kids. Sun-mi doesn't really understand why the wife of a rich household would want to do something like this, but she promises her friend to help.
Ji-hyun is also taking baking classes and the things she bakes (i.e. a walnut tart) is loved by everyone (including Ahn Do-young who gets a piece through their daughter). With Sera, she has a candid discussion about the divorce and how it could get ugly. She promises her daughter that both her parents will be there for her. Smart Sera asks what will happen if Gyu-shik never consents to the divorce? Oh ... Ji-hyun says she has a plan!! And indeed, a plan she has. It involves the awful MILDragon and she sets it in action as soon as that terrible woman returns from her trip. She goes to see her and tells her all about "her past". MILDragon thinks she can threaten Ji-hyun with the fact that she said she would walk out on her own two feet if anything bad happened due to her again. Yes, says Ji-hyun (pretending to be sad about it), she said that and she is willing to go ... but her husband doesn't want to LET her go! He says he wants to forgive her. MILDragon almost has a heart attack.
Very smart. Very smart.
MILDragon does talk to her son afterwards and indeed, she realizes that he doesn't want to let Ji-hyun go. As always, MILDragon pretends to be that nice and caring person, but as soon as he has left, she turns into a monster again. At home, Gyu-shik is furious that Ji-hyun went to see his mother. Why did she do that? But Ji-hyun has this well planned out. She never wanted to tell him, but now she has no other choice but to tell him what kind of two-faced monster his mother is. And she tells him about the constant abuse she got. Of course, Gyu-shik doesn't believe her ... but there is some doubt there at least.
They are called to MILDragon's house together afterwards. Two-faced as always, she says that she agrees with Gyu-shik, the past is the past, and it makes no sense to break up because
of it. They should indeed forget the past and start anew. She then takes Ji-hyun to the kitchen and tells her to pack her things immediately and leave - there is no need to
go through the divorce. But then ... oh yes. Finally, Ji-hyun gives back what this Dragon deserves. She tells her how she is inferior herself (in many more words, quite enjoyable) and ends up likening her to a mackerel who wants to be a whale. MILDragon gets more and more furious ... so furious she can no longer contain herself. Even though Gyu-shik is standing right next to them, she blows a fuse (when Ji-hyun says she will cook her mackerel) and starts throwing stuff at her, calling her names. Finally, Gyu-shik sees it with his own eyes ... Victory!
There's this incredibly sweet scene with Ahn Do-young after one of her baking classes, too. He leads her into an apartment that he has rented for her. It's just for her - he will never show up there again. She can use it to practice baking and
have time for herself... of course, she refuses, but he just walks out ... and on the way, he tells her the pass code is her birthday. That? It made me cry. He is doing exactly what he should be doing: he doesn't pressure her. He is just there for her, supporting her. So self-less ...
After the MILDragon incident, Gyu-shik comes homes, staggering drunk. She leads him into the room and helps him onto the bed. He is so, so sorry ... he never knew about his mother. Why didn't she tell him before? But Ji-hyun, always the martyr, says she considered it a price to pay for being with him. He cries ... she wouldn't know how much he loves her. He can't let her go because he
loves her so much ... the next day, however, he comes home with the divorce papers. Let's do this, he says. Oh man ... this is just like Goddess of Marriage! Only that Gyu-shik dude is definitely no Kim Ji-hoon ...
Jung-wan, Oh Kyung-soo and the Rest
Jung-wan is incredibly down because of what her son said. She isn't telling Kyung-soo though (why? she never does ...), who is still very pushy, organizes a wedding planner and really wants to do this as quickly as possible. Jeez. At breakfast though, she does speak her mind ... to her son and to her mother. Of course, her son is quite burdened by it all ... and he calls Oh Kyung-soo. Oh immediately calls Jung-wan out (in the meantime, she tried to get her Ex to talk to Tae-geuk, but quite understandably, he refuses to do so), and they have a sweet moment in the car, where he tells her not to worry ... even if he is dumped right before the wedding, it's better than her running away AT the wedding. He says let's postpone ... the important thing is that they love each other. And he would never, ever want to separate her from her son. But he is quite glad he already told everybody they would get married! Because that means she cannot run away easily. Hahaha.
Oh Kyung-soo isn't anyone to sit still, though. He has a plan ... and that plan involves Tae-geuk. He goes to Jung-wan's place to "bring her some documents" ... only that the documents he brings are the complete wrong ones. He conveniently stays for dinner but then eats so much he gets a stomach ache. He keeps behaving rather childishly until Tae-geuk says he has something to say ... the has rethought the whole thing and wants to stay with his mother now. Awwwwwwwwwwww. Big sigh of relief.
He then gets Oh to come into his room, and then starts lecturing him. Why is he so careless? He actually though he would be able to take good care of his mother, but now he sees that that's not the case ... he is worried. Haha, but shortly after, he let's Kyung-soo know that he totally KNEW he was doing it on purpose, it was far too clumsy. He changed his mind not because of him but because of his mom ... he would worry about her if she was unhappy.
Not happy about all of this is, of course, hapless Han Joon-Mo. He gets piss-drunk and calls Oh-boy there, because he wants a drinking buddy. The two men drink together and it becomes clear that even though he is very sad, Joon-mo fully understands why Tae-geuk did what he did. They get more and more drunk (well, at least Joon-mo does), ending up telling Kyung-soo 15 times how he met Jung-wan and 22 times how happy he was when Tae-geuk was born. He then passes out on the table. Oh takes him home. puts him on couch, puts blanket over him. Dude ... you're a saint!
When Joon-mo awakes on Oh-boy's couch, has no clue where he is... But there is Oh-boy, telling him to come to the kitchen ... he has made him a hangover soup. Poor Joon-mo is quite embarrassed ... hahaha, I like these two! BROMANCE! He tells Oh-boy that he is relieved but bitter. He is relieved that he is such a good person - and he now know that it is fine to leave his son and his ex-wife with him. But he is also bitter because he loses these two people to him. When he meets Jung-wan afterwards, he tells her that it is better for Tae-geuk to be with her. And one more thing ... live well with the Director. He is cool. (not sure about that phone call he gets when she has left ... was that his mother asking him to bring Tae-geuk back?)
And Jung-wan runs ... runs to her love. He is currently in a meeting, but he has "5 minutes". That's enough for what she wants to do. She drags him outside and kisses him ... oh yeah. For being so awesome. That gets him to call Park PD to tell him that the next meetings needs to be pushed back ... he needs 30 minutes. And he starts kissing back ...
Comments
Alright! No more obstacles? Is that it? Is ex-husband out of the way etc. etc. etc.? I think we have four episodes to go, so many things can still happen ... let's just hope they won't. We also need to sort the lives of the other two women out, so there's plenty to tell in 4 more hours.
Do I want Sun-mi together with Puppy? Not really. She is aweful and even though she keeps thinking of him in odd moments, I don't think she should be lucky enough to be with such a sweet guy. I'd rather have them share some childcare responsibilities, on friendly terms, but without being together. A modern family.
Do I want Ji-hyun to divorce? Not really. I don't like the portrayal of divorce as something easy and as solution as soon as something goes wrong in a marriage. We just need to MILDragon out of the way and things will be much better. Gyu-shik has always been very good to her (before this whole mess started) and I believe him when he says he loves her very much. She is at fault for lying to him for all these years - but I think they can overcome these issues. Where does that leave Ahn Do-young? Well, he has a daughter now - and I do hope he and her non-birth parents and him can work something out that works for everyone. Another modern family. I'd like that!
Episode 16
Sun-mi, Yoon-Seok, and a bit of Jung-wan
We're back to the baby-confrontation in front of Sun-mi's house: Puppy Yoon-seok wants a genetic test, but Sun-mi lies to Puppy that it's definitely not his. He is not convinced, but what can he do? When she's inside and alone, tears well up in her eyes. I wish I could feel more sorry for you, but ... soon. Soon I'll be ready. Yes, the drama does indeed aim for rehabilitation of this dreadful character (of course), but like me, others in the drama are not quite ready to forgive yet. Sun-mi meets Jung-wan, several times. In one instance, she is deeply troubled about what lies ahead of her and she has nobody else but Jung-wan to talk to. She doesn't know whether to keep the baby or not - this is most likely her last chance to be a mother, but she also has no confidence to raise this baby by herself. Jung-wan doesn't offer any help or consolation, but just leaves the car without a word.
Ji-hye, Gyu-shik, the MILDragon, and a bit of Ahn Do-young
Gyu-shik ... oh well. In this episode, he is again part horrible, part really pitiful. He presses ahead with the paternity case, now trying to get what he wants without his wife, who isn't signing the necessary documents. Of course, he frequently freaks out. Ji-hyun on the other hand ... YES, she finally takes things into her own hand! She goes to Sun-mi to talk about opening up a small shop - in which she wants to sell snack for kids. Sun-mi doesn't really understand why the wife of a rich household would want to do something like this, but she promises her friend to help.
MILDragon does talk to her son afterwards and indeed, she realizes that he doesn't want to let Ji-hyun go. As always, MILDragon pretends to be that nice and caring person, but as soon as he has left, she turns into a monster again. At home, Gyu-shik is furious that Ji-hyun went to see his mother. Why did she do that? But Ji-hyun has this well planned out. She never wanted to tell him, but now she has no other choice but to tell him what kind of two-faced monster his mother is. And she tells him about the constant abuse she got. Of course, Gyu-shik doesn't believe her ... but there is some doubt there at least.
Jung-wan, Oh Kyung-soo and the Rest
Jung-wan is incredibly down because of what her son said. She isn't telling Kyung-soo though (why? she never does ...), who is still very pushy, organizes a wedding planner and really wants to do this as quickly as possible. Jeez. At breakfast though, she does speak her mind ... to her son and to her mother. Of course, her son is quite burdened by it all ... and he calls Oh Kyung-soo. Oh immediately calls Jung-wan out (in the meantime, she tried to get her Ex to talk to Tae-geuk, but quite understandably, he refuses to do so), and they have a sweet moment in the car, where he tells her not to worry ... even if he is dumped right before the wedding, it's better than her running away AT the wedding. He says let's postpone ... the important thing is that they love each other. And he would never, ever want to separate her from her son. But he is quite glad he already told everybody they would get married! Because that means she cannot run away easily. Hahaha.
Comments
Alright! No more obstacles? Is that it? Is ex-husband out of the way etc. etc. etc.? I think we have four episodes to go, so many things can still happen ... let's just hope they won't. We also need to sort the lives of the other two women out, so there's plenty to tell in 4 more hours.
Do I want Sun-mi together with Puppy? Not really. She is aweful and even though she keeps thinking of him in odd moments, I don't think she should be lucky enough to be with such a sweet guy. I'd rather have them share some childcare responsibilities, on friendly terms, but without being together. A modern family.
Do I want Ji-hyun to divorce? Not really. I don't like the portrayal of divorce as something easy and as solution as soon as something goes wrong in a marriage. We just need to MILDragon out of the way and things will be much better. Gyu-shik has always been very good to her (before this whole mess started) and I believe him when he says he loves her very much. She is at fault for lying to him for all these years - but I think they can overcome these issues. Where does that leave Ahn Do-young? Well, he has a daughter now - and I do hope he and her non-birth parents and him can work something out that works for everyone. Another modern family. I'd like that!