Jang Bori Is Here! - Episode 21 (KimJiCap)
All-clear, people, all-clear! This drama isn't as fast as we thought it was last week, so all is in order in the world of crazy weekend dramas. And! We now begin the road of incredibly cute falling-in-love ... well, they're already in love. But they will have to realize that they are. It's my favorite part of any drama, hands-down - I'm so happy! So are the Koreans, this drama steadily increases its ratings and now ranks 2nd in its time slot.
JoAnne: Yep, this is the sweet spot. I enjoyed this episode so much that I actually texted you about it and said I was looking forward to the next! And these long weekend things... they can be hard for me, so that was saying something!
kakashi: It's totally a good drama! I like it very much!
Episode 21
Min-jung, who is cleaning like an evil version of Cinderella, sees a picture of baby Eun-bi (which suddenly appeared in the house, I assume) and realizes it's Bori! While she does the wide-eyed shock-face (she does it well), Bong2 steps up behind her and Min-jung drops the picture frame in fright. He is suspicious again. She lies about the picture being all dusty and stuff, but that's the beginning of the end for her, I'm sure! But she wouldn't be Min-jung if she didn't immediately plot another evilness, this time involving her mother. That doesn't save her from being scolded by BaDIL as well, which is a pleasure to watch. Min-jung confirms Bori/Eun-bis's identity with old photo albums later, while Bong2 watches from the door. Alright, we've now definitely established that the Hanbokers are no longer completely bewitched by the witch.
JoAnne: In an odd twist, I feel a twinge of sympathy in my satisfaction that these people appear to be quite ready to kick this girl to the curb even after years of knowing and supporting her. Not that I want her to be happy or win or anything, but I am human and when I consider how hard she has worked to achieve what she has and then realize how unsafe she must feel at every moment... I mean it's what she DESERVES but...you know? It's kind of sad. I don't know why she has to be the way she is. She brings it all on herself.
kakashi: JoAnne, when I said the same a few weeks ago, you were all "noooo, let the bitch burn". Now I am saying "noooo, let the bitch burn". No sympathy from me at this moment.
Jae-hwa is at his aunt's place, quite angry: he thinks that his aunt's behavior (= the hiding from him) was bad, but ahjumma's? Much worse! All those lies when he was looking so hard. Jae-hwa starts to cry, overwhelmed by happiness that his aunt is still alive. He puts his head on her lap and says now he feels like living again - he felt so alone in this world. Awwwww ... I'm a bit distracted by this gesture, which really doesn't suit a 30+ year old man, but more so by his tiny white socks. Yeah. It's about the nonsexist thing I might ever have seen on a man. Also, I wore the exact same socks today.
JoAnne: That move he made completely creeped me out. I barely registered that he was wearing girl socks. I noticed it but it just added to the overall discomfort of the scene. Even Bori was horrified and she's kind of an idiot about sex.
Ha, yeah, even Bori thinks he acts like a baby. Jae-hwa counterattacks right away though, by voicing his suspicion that Bori tricked him together with Big Kang aka Brown Bear. No, Jae-hwa, say the women. Yes! He is sure! He will reveal it all to them right away. He calls the gangsters and tells them to come - he is ready to settle.
JoAnne: Why couldn't his aunt let him know that Bori didn't give birth to Bi Dan and save us all a ton of grief?
kakashi: Ah. That. Maybe she has an agreement with the producer.
They do come and so does Big Kang. There's almost a fist-fight and loooooots of misunderstanding (on Jae-hwa's side), but Big Kang handles it like a pro (ah! the charisma!), says this is all forgotten, but Jae-hwa will need to pay for the hospital bill and repairs. He sure will. When he leaves, the gangsters runs after Brown Bear shouting "hyungnim, hyungnim". They're like ducklings. I hope we'll see them again.
JoAnne: I would chase after him yelling Oppa or Merry Christmas or Long Live the Queen or whatever he wanted because that man is SEXAY and from the moment he first appeared on the screen my hormones sat up and took notice. 'Breaks from puppies are IMPORTANT!' they screamed. I listened.
Now that his big crisis has passed, Jae-hwa is sooooo happy to find out that Bori is still single. He wonders silently why his heart is fluttering again now that he has met her - didn't he resent her after finding out about the kid? Err ... definitely NOT, Jae-hwa.
JoAnne: Yeah but he'll still be happy to find out that when he touches her he will LITERALLY be on virgin territory.
kakashi: About the touching, though .... she usually beats him up. See below.
He follows her to the market, where she buys material for hanboks. He thinks his heart may be broken, but he also decides to just go where his heart takes him - grinning from ear to ear. After they're mistaken for newlyweds, she retaliates by loading him with as much as she can buy. Shouldn't have boasted that you're strong, Jae-hwa, and her errand boy for the day!
JoAnne: He's so cute it's ridiculous.
Outside, she even tops it off with fruit ... including a huge watermelon. All of that happens a long way away from the house. Mean. Somewhere on the long way home, Jae-hwa collapses from the heat and lack of water. She smashes and emergency-feeds him the watermelon because there's no water near. He survives. I'm glad.
JoAnne: Yes but did you go out and buy a watermelon?
When he realizes she was worried about him, he gets all serious... and hopeful. He asks her whether she is glad to have met him again. Only problem ... there's a watermelon seed on his face. She stares at his face, imagining it on different parts of it, while he thinks she cannot get enough of him. She finally settles on his front teeth as the best place for the seed and breaks into a smile, but the staring at his lips makes him believe she is thinking about kissing him. He thinks to himself that this is not a good place for it, really, because there's too many people watching.
JoAnne: Ok this was HILARIOUS. How many takes to get this without breaking character and peeing themselves laughing?
"Do it", she says then - and he cannot believe his ears. How? What? Here? How daring! He leans in, carefully, carefully, but then, she says that he needs to open his mouth. Oh dear, haha. That totally shocks him! He says he can't go through with it, she says fine, then she will do it. That's something he has never experienced before, a girl initiating a French kiss! Slowly, he opens his mouth (like a fish) ... and she puts the seed right onto his tooth.
JoAnne: He must be a virgin too, don't you think? Or at least, BARELY not one.
kakashi: Definitely a timid sort of womanizer, yes.
It cracks her up. He is disappointed, of course, but retaliates right away with a seed on her cheek. She puts more on his cheek. He more on her. Oh, a meta joke! She is Goo Eun Jae from Temptation of Wife, he says. She doesn't think that's funny and they gather their things to go back home, when he says that she sure looked pretty way back then in Jangheung, when he kissed her. He will give her a kiss again, on a beautiful like that, just she wait. And he carries all the things for her, because "her sewing hand cannot be hurt". While he can still work as a prosecutor even if he breaks an arm. Oh my goodness. Awwwwwwwwwwwww. This rattles her, as it should. Such a sweet man once he stops being silly.
JoAnne: Ok someone in the comments explain the meta (Temptation of Wife is the hit-drama of the Jangbori writer). I could tell it meant something, but I didn't know what (everybody makes fun of it: remember Cunning Single Lady? There too). I have never seen Temptation of Wife (It has 120+ episodes). And yes, he's sweet. Plus, he has that 'The Hanbok is All' mentality, which means he's perfect for her.
In the meantime, the Hanbokers think Min-jung might have stolen Eun-bi's picture ... and that GooDIL might have raised Eun-bi. Ha. Not quite, but that's better than nothing! BaDIL is so afraid of GooDIL, she sends shady servant to Janheung. To find out about her - and also Min-jung.
JoAnne: Kinda wish they would have done more of a background check on the troll princess up front, but whatever, we would have had half the drama if they did that.
When Bori is on her way to Bi Sool Chae sometime later, Jae-hwa appears. Does he ever work?! He has a cake for her. It's one he particularly likes and he got it for her and Bi-dan. She doesn't want it, since she has to take Bi-dan to the hospital, but he says it's a kind hearted gesture, of course she has to take it. Not much later, we see WHY he was so eager to have her take it ... there's a phone inside! When he calls, it talks in his voice, going "catch me if you can" and stuff. It annoys the whole bus she's in, but he is just smiling happily in his car when she picks up. Now he can finally reach her. Of course he calls again right away.
JoAnne: Didn't she already have a phone?
At Bi Sool Chae, Matron isn't in, so Bori decides to wait a bit for her. Stepping up to her is Min-jung, suggesting she leave quickly. Bori says she wants to see the Matron personally, to tell her she won't be coming for a while. She almost lets on about Bi-dan, who will get surgery in a bit, but stops in time and says Min-jung doesn't need to know about her family. Because she needs to leave, Bori deposits the bundle of clothes in Matron's room ... and then steps up to the new photos-section. Min-jung catches her right on time (too early! Yes! almost 30 more episodes!) and rips the picture frame out of her hand. Not only that, she also goes and sabotages Bori's sewing. Seriously. That's just dumb of Min-jung. Does she think she'll get away with this?! Well, her evil plan seems to be working - Matron starts to believe that Bori did a bad job and is a bad person.
JoAnne: And I think MATRON is a bad person (agreed). She's SO disloyal to people. And lets not forget that her decision to pit GooDIL and BaDIL against each is the original reason she ended up with a dead son and a missing granddaughter.
Jae-hwa finds out that Bori has to go to the hospital with Bi-dan and goes there himself. Right on time! Bi-dan is already afraid her mother might collapse all by herself - so she asks Jae-hwa to stay with her mother during the surgery and take care of her. She will buy him ice cream as a thank you after the surgery. Fine, says Jae-hwa - he will hold her mother's hand all day. Bi-dan also expresses the wish for a dad, a real one, which makes Bori say she'll marry anybody then.
JoAnne: Oh, my heart! It hurts so good! Side note: My step-dad of 25 years, who I adore, met and ultimately married my mother because HIS youngest child, at about Bi-Dan's age, played matchmaker. So I have a soft spot for these kinds of things.
Shady Servant is back from Jangheung ... and he has found out that Min-jung used to call somebody "omma", may also have a younger sibling ... and that that somebody she named omma is now in Seoul! Off they go, to see this woman for themselves! Min-jung hears it all behind the door.
JoAnne: It doesn't seem like her downfall can be too far off. What will they do for the rest of the drama?
Bori is in tears in front of the operating room, so Jae-hwa takes her hand and tells her to calm down. She is so worried about her daughter. He holds both her hands now, but she continues crying. He is afraid to get too close to her, so he doesn't properly hug her, but he tells her that this is a good surgery that will make her healthier, so there's no need to cry. It's still not helping. So he drags her to the room and puts her on the bed. Rawr. Be quiet, he says as he bends over her, and relax. He will wait in front of the operating room.
JoAnne: When Kim Ji Hoon wants to be manly, he does a really good job of it. *fans self*
The Rest
Big Kang is already dressed like a pizza employee and does all kinds of work at the shop, but Jung-ran keeps insisting she will not officially hire him. Paaaaaboooooo. He is sweet and considerate and hot and cool. She is beginning to crack.
JoAnne: Even in that shirt. Hot. And he knows she wants him. He's so confident...but not at ALL cocky, just certain that he can win her back in time.
Jae-hee has plans for going after some musician woman from an influential family. Love will come after a successful marriage, he believes. And if not, who cares. Well, Min-jung does when she hears about this ... will her Jae-hee plans go up in smoke?
JoAnne: I always thought he had the hots for Min Jung, isn't that funny? I know the show's been dropping hints that it wouldn't be that way lately, but it seemed so out of character that I was dismissing them. I just think this character is badly written and given less thought than the others.
AppaNotOppa keeps tormenting Min-jung just by being there. He is suuuuper creepy, but I like this quiet revenge. It's much more threatening to have somebody who knows about your lies right next to you all the time, doing nothing much, than have someone rage at you all the time.
JoAnne: Isn't it funny how creepy he is when he was such a sad sack before?
Min-jung tells Jae-hee that she has never seen Ga-eul in New York (bitch), and Jae-hee starts investigating. Little Kang confirms that he has seen Ga-eul in South Korea. Uh-oh: Jae-hee catches Gae-eul with Jae-hwa outside the PPL café. Man, they're all afraid of their father ...at least he beats all of them this time and for once, the brothers are not at each other's throat.
JoAnne: Really, least interesting sub plot. Put her with Little Kang, I'll perk up.
Comments
Min-jung's star is going down, down, down, it's a matter of time (2, 3, 4 episodes?) until her lies - at least some of them - will be exposed. This episode gave us hope that Jae-hee might not be entirely doomed ... I like that. He has no romantic interest in her (even though he has expressed before that he finds her attractive), only a business interest and I hope that doesn't change too quickly. The drama has given Jae-hee a "little" more character in the last few episodes, showing him as a man who is deeply afraid to lose what he built of for himself and his mother.
JoAnne: This is true but don't you think that came out of left field? So his whole life he's been working like this because he feels like that father could just throw them to the curb? I don't buy it. I mean, I buy that it's his motivation, but I don't buy anyone ever believing that. That dad is all bluster and has demonstrated time and again that he takes care of his family.
Jae-hwa and Bori are just cute. She isn't used to anybody being kind to her, especially not a man - and she has a hard time understanding why this person, whom she doesn't have the best impression of, would show her such sustained kindness. His remark that she was incredibly pretty down at the river has made her aware of her own value as a woman - I like that. Jae-hwa is just so incredibly cute as he "struggles" against liking her (like: not at all). How nice that he has already accepted that she has a kid - he doesn't even think that weird anymore. He likes her so much he would probably want her even with 5 kids.
JoAnne: Yeah, he really gave in to that pretty quickly (I say as I acknowledge that he's had 5 years to get used to the idea so far.) And I keep forgetting how he must look to her, because we know so much more than she does. Whatever...they're going to be an adorably cute couple when they both give in.
JoAnne: Yep, this is the sweet spot. I enjoyed this episode so much that I actually texted you about it and said I was looking forward to the next! And these long weekend things... they can be hard for me, so that was saying something!
kakashi: It's totally a good drama! I like it very much!
Min-jung, who is cleaning like an evil version of Cinderella, sees a picture of baby Eun-bi (which suddenly appeared in the house, I assume) and realizes it's Bori! While she does the wide-eyed shock-face (she does it well), Bong2 steps up behind her and Min-jung drops the picture frame in fright. He is suspicious again. She lies about the picture being all dusty and stuff, but that's the beginning of the end for her, I'm sure! But she wouldn't be Min-jung if she didn't immediately plot another evilness, this time involving her mother. That doesn't save her from being scolded by BaDIL as well, which is a pleasure to watch. Min-jung confirms Bori/Eun-bis's identity with old photo albums later, while Bong2 watches from the door. Alright, we've now definitely established that the Hanbokers are no longer completely bewitched by the witch.
JoAnne: In an odd twist, I feel a twinge of sympathy in my satisfaction that these people appear to be quite ready to kick this girl to the curb even after years of knowing and supporting her. Not that I want her to be happy or win or anything, but I am human and when I consider how hard she has worked to achieve what she has and then realize how unsafe she must feel at every moment... I mean it's what she DESERVES but...you know? It's kind of sad. I don't know why she has to be the way she is. She brings it all on herself.
kakashi: JoAnne, when I said the same a few weeks ago, you were all "noooo, let the bitch burn". Now I am saying "noooo, let the bitch burn". No sympathy from me at this moment.
JoAnne: That move he made completely creeped me out. I barely registered that he was wearing girl socks. I noticed it but it just added to the overall discomfort of the scene. Even Bori was horrified and she's kind of an idiot about sex.
JoAnne: Why couldn't his aunt let him know that Bori didn't give birth to Bi Dan and save us all a ton of grief?
kakashi: Ah. That. Maybe she has an agreement with the producer.
JoAnne: I would chase after him yelling Oppa or Merry Christmas or Long Live the Queen or whatever he wanted because that man is SEXAY and from the moment he first appeared on the screen my hormones sat up and took notice. 'Breaks from puppies are IMPORTANT!' they screamed. I listened.
JoAnne: Yeah but he'll still be happy to find out that when he touches her he will LITERALLY be on virgin territory.
kakashi: About the touching, though .... she usually beats him up. See below.
JoAnne: He's so cute it's ridiculous.
JoAnne: Yes but did you go out and buy a watermelon?
JoAnne: Ok this was HILARIOUS. How many takes to get this without breaking character and peeing themselves laughing?
"Do it", she says then - and he cannot believe his ears. How? What? Here? How daring! He leans in, carefully, carefully, but then, she says that he needs to open his mouth. Oh dear, haha. That totally shocks him! He says he can't go through with it, she says fine, then she will do it. That's something he has never experienced before, a girl initiating a French kiss! Slowly, he opens his mouth (like a fish) ... and she puts the seed right onto his tooth.JoAnne: He must be a virgin too, don't you think? Or at least, BARELY not one.
kakashi: Definitely a timid sort of womanizer, yes.
JoAnne: Ok someone in the comments explain the meta (Temptation of Wife is the hit-drama of the Jangbori writer). I could tell it meant something, but I didn't know what (everybody makes fun of it: remember Cunning Single Lady? There too). I have never seen Temptation of Wife (It has 120+ episodes). And yes, he's sweet. Plus, he has that 'The Hanbok is All' mentality, which means he's perfect for her.
JoAnne: Kinda wish they would have done more of a background check on the troll princess up front, but whatever, we would have had half the drama if they did that.
When Bori is on her way to Bi Sool Chae sometime later, Jae-hwa appears. Does he ever work?! He has a cake for her. It's one he particularly likes and he got it for her and Bi-dan. She doesn't want it, since she has to take Bi-dan to the hospital, but he says it's a kind hearted gesture, of course she has to take it. Not much later, we see WHY he was so eager to have her take it ... there's a phone inside! When he calls, it talks in his voice, going "catch me if you can" and stuff. It annoys the whole bus she's in, but he is just smiling happily in his car when she picks up. Now he can finally reach her. Of course he calls again right away.
JoAnne: Didn't she already have a phone?
JoAnne: And I think MATRON is a bad person (agreed). She's SO disloyal to people. And lets not forget that her decision to pit GooDIL and BaDIL against each is the original reason she ended up with a dead son and a missing granddaughter.
JoAnne: Oh, my heart! It hurts so good! Side note: My step-dad of 25 years, who I adore, met and ultimately married my mother because HIS youngest child, at about Bi-Dan's age, played matchmaker. So I have a soft spot for these kinds of things.
JoAnne: It doesn't seem like her downfall can be too far off. What will they do for the rest of the drama?
Bori is in tears in front of the operating room, so Jae-hwa takes her hand and tells her to calm down. She is so worried about her daughter. He holds both her hands now, but she continues crying. He is afraid to get too close to her, so he doesn't properly hug her, but he tells her that this is a good surgery that will make her healthier, so there's no need to cry. It's still not helping. So he drags her to the room and puts her on the bed. Rawr. Be quiet, he says as he bends over her, and relax. He will wait in front of the operating room.
JoAnne: When Kim Ji Hoon wants to be manly, he does a really good job of it. *fans self*
The Rest
Big Kang is already dressed like a pizza employee and does all kinds of work at the shop, but Jung-ran keeps insisting she will not officially hire him. Paaaaaboooooo. He is sweet and considerate and hot and cool. She is beginning to crack.
JoAnne: Even in that shirt. Hot. And he knows she wants him. He's so confident...but not at ALL cocky, just certain that he can win her back in time.
JoAnne: I always thought he had the hots for Min Jung, isn't that funny? I know the show's been dropping hints that it wouldn't be that way lately, but it seemed so out of character that I was dismissing them. I just think this character is badly written and given less thought than the others.
JoAnne: Isn't it funny how creepy he is when he was such a sad sack before?
JoAnne: Really, least interesting sub plot. Put her with Little Kang, I'll perk up.
Comments
Min-jung's star is going down, down, down, it's a matter of time (2, 3, 4 episodes?) until her lies - at least some of them - will be exposed. This episode gave us hope that Jae-hee might not be entirely doomed ... I like that. He has no romantic interest in her (even though he has expressed before that he finds her attractive), only a business interest and I hope that doesn't change too quickly. The drama has given Jae-hee a "little" more character in the last few episodes, showing him as a man who is deeply afraid to lose what he built of for himself and his mother.
JoAnne: This is true but don't you think that came out of left field? So his whole life he's been working like this because he feels like that father could just throw them to the curb? I don't buy it. I mean, I buy that it's his motivation, but I don't buy anyone ever believing that. That dad is all bluster and has demonstrated time and again that he takes care of his family.
Jae-hwa and Bori are just cute. She isn't used to anybody being kind to her, especially not a man - and she has a hard time understanding why this person, whom she doesn't have the best impression of, would show her such sustained kindness. His remark that she was incredibly pretty down at the river has made her aware of her own value as a woman - I like that. Jae-hwa is just so incredibly cute as he "struggles" against liking her (like: not at all). How nice that he has already accepted that she has a kid - he doesn't even think that weird anymore. He likes her so much he would probably want her even with 5 kids.
JoAnne: Yeah, he really gave in to that pretty quickly (I say as I acknowledge that he's had 5 years to get used to the idea so far.) And I keep forgetting how he must look to her, because we know so much more than she does. Whatever...they're going to be an adorably cute couple when they both give in.