Ngao Jai (Shadows Of The Heart) Episode 14 (A ScruffCap)
Barreling towards the end, there are still many things to clear up. But the biggest lies are exposed, and it's up to everyone to deal with them the best way they can. But don't take too long, because evil is ahead on the scoreboard, and our good guys have got to prevail!
becca: This is a sad episode, even if it didn't always make sense. I hope the good guys can set everything right in time to give us some cuteness again before the show ends.
EPISODE 14
Warin is packing up Veggie Mom’s stuff for her discharge from the hospital. Mom asks about Uncle Bulldozer, and Rut has to tell her of his condition. She muses that he loved Watit a lot, and is now worried about Rut staying at Citrus Farm and possibly in danger.
Rut is adamant, though, that he will stay there until Uncle and May are both safe, especially with Uncle’s current condition. I’m thinking maybe he will actually start investigating. Veggie Mom reluctantly agrees, given that Uncle has kept an eye on her family all these years. But she wants him to promise to be very very careful.
Does Rut know how to be careful? Sometimes I wonder. I hope he at least has a plan this time.
Rut finally returns to Citrus Farm. Uncle is unresponsive and sitting in a wheelchair. Rut explains he is awake but is unaware. Everyone at the farm looks sad as he wheels the older man into the house. Well, everyone but Evil Goon, who is happy happy happy.
All he's missing is a moustache to twirl as he giggles.
When it’s the three of them, May comments that she is surprised at the extent of Uncle’s problems. Rut says sometimes the things trapped in our hearts can be overwhelming. Nevertheless, they both promise to take care of the older man.
Evil Goon shows up with his Cheshire Cat smile, snarking at the beauty of two people helping each other take care of a vegetable. Rut warns him not to speak ill of his father, but Goon pounces on the word. Can he be a ‘father’ if he’s just a lump on a chair? May is appalled at the cousin’s words, while Rut gets into a shouting match. Goon challenges him to prove that he has any right to speak as if he is the owner of the farm.
Fight! Fight! Fight!
Then it gets physical. They start trading blows until May forces her way between them. She yells at Goon to stop behaving this way to his younger sibling.
Watching Rut take a swing at Goon is soooo satisfying.
Goon sneers that he’s forced to call Watit “brother” because of everyone else, but one day, she will know differently. And that day he will protect neither Black Hair (FakeWatit) or White Hair (Uncle). May demands to know what he means by this cryptic statement, but Goon just pushes himself away. Uncle twitches, almost like Watit in his final suffocating moments.
Ack! What a lovely comparison. NOT. I may not be Uncle Bulldozer's biggest fan, but I certainly don't want him to die!
At Greed House, Naree refuses to help take care of Uncle, knowing that her presence is some part of her dad’s and her lover’s scheme to steal the farm. He goes lovey-dovey; he doesn't want his inheritance to go to a fake, he loves her since she is his only family. He promises to take care of her. And she believes him and agrees to return to Citrus Farm. Her EEEdiocy and his EEEvilness are in perfect balance.
*sigh* Every time I feel just a little - just a teensy bit - of hope for her, she turns around and does something stupid again. Don't listen to the villain, Naree!
May is passing her fears to Tippy, that the two cousins are getting more and more aggressive to each other. And all the strange happenings, too. May is convinced the two guys are hiding something from her, something they both know but she doesn't. Tippy muses that the pair used to fight over May, but now they have other issues that they argue over.
Hey, remember when May was suspicious of Rut and had a plan to confirm if he was really Watit or not? I wish we'd stuck with that.
Horrid Housekeeper is happy to see Naree back to take care of Uncle. The younger woman is surprised to see Uncle’s condition. May promises to help with his care, but Naree growls no, she can do 24-hour care perfectly fine, thank you. HH adds to the tension and barks that Naree is a nurse and May is just a nosy biatch that sticks her nose where it doesn't belong. Stop picking on our Disney Princess you nasty mean creature! Rut finally steps up and ends the accusations, and asks Naree to take great care of Uncle.
I suspect HH has a problem. Her brain is missing. After all this time, you'd think that she would have realized that May isn't a bad person, but nope.
That night (already??) Naree steps back as Evil Goon tries to force Uncle to sign a new will. Um, Goon, he doesn’t respond to anyone, so yelling at him to make a voluntary movement is pretty pointless, no matter how many times you yell.
Okay, so HH isn't the only one without a brain. Off to the Wizard of Oz with you three! And remember to pick up some hearts while you're there!
He tries to force a pen into Uncle’s hand, but isn't successful. He builds up a head of anger, but Naree prevents him from getting physical. She convinces Goon that this can happen with time.
Rut knocks on Uncle’s door, wanting to speak with Naree. Goon hides. But Rut can see the scattered medications and signs that all is not calm in Uncle’s bedroom. Naree covers and says she dropped the medicine tray. Rut wonders why Uncle isn't prepped for bed; he also sees the fallen ink pen on the carpet. Naree can’t come up with anything plausible and just repeats herself.
If you repeat it enough times, Naree… he still won't believe it.
Suspicious now, Rut starts looking around the entire room. Goon sneaks up behind him with a ceramic vase. Oh, snap! But Rut leaves before Goon can knock him out. Before Goon leaves, he demands that Naree figure out a way to get that affidavit signed.
In his own (Watit’s) room, Rut looks down and smiles at a sleeping May. He spends some time stroking her hair before kissing her goodnight. Once he’s down for the count, May opens up her eyes, smiles at the sleeping man, and gives him a kiss. Now they both are awake. Shenanigans!! Uummmm! Nope, but they do snuggle together.
Aww, they're so cute.
The next morning it’s Naree’s turn to get Uncle to sign the will. She pleads with him, but, again, no response. So she goes ahead and forges his signature. Pathetic Naree, you are officially on the Dark Path now.
I don't understand how she thinks this will work to her advantage. Anyone who has spent any time with Goon can tell that he still has his sights set on May.
At Greed House, Greed Dad is finalizing the paperwork signing everything over to Goon. They share identical revolting smiles as Naree brings tea. Uh, Naree, who is watching Uncle while you are back home? Greed Dad invites himself to the house for the reading of the will. Since Uncle isn’t dead, I can only surmise that it is actually a living trust, and not a will. Unless they plan on killing him.
I'm sure they'd be more than happy to kill him, if the opportunity arises. Let's hope it doesn't.
May is feeding Uncle when HH shows up and tells Rut and May there is a meeting scheduled for tomorrow at 8:00 am. But she doesn't know what it’s about.
That can't be good.
The next day, Rut, May, Koon, Naree, Kitja, and a shyster are together in the parlor. Goon starts with a pious speech that the farm’s management needs some clarification, and the attorney is there to explain the will in case ‘something’ happens.
PLOT HOLE ALERT: If the lawyer is Uncle Bulldozer's attorney, with the confidential privileges and such, wouldn't he be suspicious of a brand new will, when the person in question clearly is missing his faculties. And if he isn't Uncle’s lawyer, but someone Greed Dad found under a rock, he wouldn't have the official vetted copy of the will anyway. And the will would be sealed until a death certificate is presented. So this whole scene seems a little forced and unreal. Then again, that room has the television set tucked in a corner where you would never be able to watch it, so perhaps this is just all a surreal, peyote-induced dream sequence.
Plot twist! It's all a dream, and when Scruff wakes up, he will be living happily back on the farm with Wifey May and half a dozen kiddos!
Rut questions the will, since Uncle never said anything about it. Greed Dad says it was created before the marriage. But May rebuts that Uncle promised any transfers of properties or inheritance would be done by his own hands, and not by a will. Greed Dad implies that the will was made to prevent her from taking any more of the estate than the monies to bond out her brother.
The lawyer reads it off. No surprise, it includes an incapacitation clause and everything is left to Ankgoon, his biological nephew, with 20% and lifetime board given to Maytinee.
Pfft. Wasn't that generous of you, Goon. He must be trying to stay on her good side.
He expects to get it back when she happily marries him. Blech.
Blech, indeed.
Rut can’t stay still, and finally interrupts the proceedings and calls BS. Greed Dad pops up, pretending anger that his signature as witness isn’t good enough for legitimacy. Ah, and the shyster is not the farm’s legal team. Rut yells that Uncle intended everything to go to “Watit”. Whups.
Uh-oh. He never was a good actor.
Goon pounces on the slip. Yes, maybe Uncle meant for Watit to get everything, but where exactly IS Watit? May just looks back and forth at the two men. Rut argues that he is the man in question, but Goon is ready for this.
The secret gets spilled out, and Goon presents an entire dossier on Rut and his family. Driver’s licenses, property information, each family member, everything. May frantically flips through the binder, and recalls the picture on his phone with RealWatit in the background. With tear-filled eyes, she demands an explanation from the man in front of her.
This looks bad. This looks very bad. Without Uncle to explain, everyone will trust Goon when he paints Rut as a scheming con-artist - and killer, now that Watit is dead.
Rut desperately tries to backpedal and explain, but May is way past being pacified. She flat out asks him: Are you my Watit? His lack of answer is damning, and she all but screams the question why. Evil Goon, of course, has the answer; money. If it wasn’t for the inheritance, Watit wouldn't have died. May is in shock – died? Her husband… is dead?
Oops. There it is.
Goon keeps pressing while the wound is fresh. The man before her killed her husband and rendered Uncle to his current state. Rut can do nothing but punch Goon (YASSS) to try and stop the words. He begs May to listen to him, but she just slaps him. She cries as she asks him, what did he see her as? Aww, May, don’t feel like an idiot.
I don't like seeing Goon get his way! Not at all! But I do understand her confusion and anger.
Poor Rut, he just stares at May as Goon offers to call the police and have him escorted off the farm. A moment later, May runs out of the room, and Rut chases after her. She manages to make it to the room and lock the door before Rut can get there. She collapses on the bed, crying, as he pounds on the door and begs her to listen. It choked me up just to see his face and hear her sobs.
I'm getting teary-eyed again, just looking at the gif. Just last night they were happy and in love, and now May's whole world has been turned upside down. And poor Rut must feel like he's lost everything now: his brother, his uncle, and now his love.
Goon and Greed are gleeful as they saunter out of the house, and both are ready to celebrate. In the office, Tippy is floored to hear the news. May is beside herself and filled with regret and sorrow; she’s convinced that her argument with Watit was the catalyst that killed him. That’s right, Uncle never told anyone but the Veggie family about Watit’s assault and trauma-related wounds. Crap, totally forgot this point.
Yep. And since no one knows anything but what Good tells them, it's going to be very hard for Rut to convince them of the truth.
Tippy tries to console her, but May is also feeling like twelve kinds of fool for believing Rut to be Watit despite all the evidence to the contrary. Evidence that she saw but never connected. Tippy begs her not to blame herself. May has decided to stay at Citrus Farm in gratitude for everything uncle did for her Flower Family, and continue to take care of him. Tippy will give her strength and support.
Uh… that's nice. Doesn't really solve anything right now, though.
Rut is wandering around the living room. (They're just letting him roam loose? What happened to calling the police?) He picks up a picture of Watit, and asks for forgiveness. He looks up and May is there. They stare for a moment before she tries to bolt. He catches her and tries again to clarify the situation, but she just pleads with him to stop hurting her and playing with her emotions.
He keeps trying. Does she remember when she told him that people who love each other must trust each other? And don’t they love each other? But she shakes herself loose. The man she loves is Watit, not Rut. He calls out as she flees, but she doesn't stop.
I'm not sure that "we love and trust each other" was the best way to go in this situation. She's just learned that he's not the man she thought he was and that that man - her husband - is dead. Reminding her about all the times she said she loved him seems like rubbing salt in the wound when he should be down on his knees asking for a chance to explain everything.
Alone in her bedroom, May looks at the couple photograph on the night stand and sadly moves it facedown. She flashes back to her wedding day, and all the adorkable moments with her real husband at the piano, in the garden….
I'm sad that they killed him. He was on his way to being a truly nice guy, and he could have had an interesting trajectory.
Greed Dad is ready for his next bit of business, but Goon obviously doesn't want to have anything further to do with either member of the Greed family. But over a couple cold beers, Dad finally tells Evil Goon about his implant in Pathetic Naree’s womb, and demands that he marry his daughter immediately. Yes, Goon, feel that noose around your neck! He takes off to his truck and drives away, while Dad gloats that he set up everything beautifully for his daughter and grandchild. Pathetic Naree is sad he has to be forced, but to Dad, who cares about love when the marriage license is good enough.
What a terrible excuse for a parent! I wanna punch him. Can I punch him?
Naree gets ready to head back to Citrus Farm, but Dad forbids her to return and take care of Uncle. Her job is done, and she doesn't have to take care of the old man anymore. Uh, oh, what does he mean?
May is with Uncle in his bedroom. HH brings porridge, and for once, is she nice? Woooooow. The housekeeper’s eyes are red as she gently asks May how she is doing. She breaks down, wondering why bad things happened to good people. She calls May pitiful for living with a liar all this time. May puts on a brave front; that imposter means nothing to her, and now her sole focus is Uncle. HH thanks her for not abandoning her benefactor, and apologizes for all her mean behavior. May graciously forgives, of course.
I am less willing to forgive.
It's a requirement for all Disney Princesses.
I always knew I'd fail the test.
In the bedroom, Rut is packing his things. May walks in on him and turns to leave, but Rut quietly stops her. She doesn't have to leave; he’s already packed his stuff and is ready to go. She turns around at the news, and he continues. He can’t repair what happened but he wants her promise to take care of Uncle. And he will always be available if she needs him. She doesn't say a word, still trying to hold back tears. Finally, he asks her to take care of herself and walks out, backpack in hand.
It's… so sad. Stop! Try to explain! Defend yourself, Rut. Please.
May turns as if to stop him, but the next scene has Rut outside on the patio all night, sitting by the flowers and remembering her rejection. In her room, May has another breakdown / crying jag.
Rut returns back to the house the next morning, and HH is ministering to Uncle. He appeals to her for a chance to say goodbye to Uncle. She glares, threatens dire punishment if he hurts anyone, and leaves. Rut apologizes and thanks the older man for everything. Just then, Evil Goon walks in and overhears.
Okay, let's pause right here for a minute because I have a question. Actually two. A) Why one earth would she leave Rut alone with Uncle if she believes he killed Watit? And B) If they all think he killed Watit, why is no one calling the police? They're just going to let him go and forget about it?
I dunno, magic?
Evil Goon thinks it laughable that Rut is talking to that crazy old man; Rut grabs him by the lapels. Calm down, Rut! You’re playing into his hands! Goon laughs that he can talk at and do anything he wants to Uncle, since he’s the bloodline and Rut isn't. Rut swears he will expose the person who attacked Watit; Goon's eyes glow with unholy fervor as he freely admits to doing every bad deed. And to prove the point, he pushes Uncle’s wheelchair over, spilling the man onto the floor.
Bad, Goon! BAD GOON!! That was not very nice.
That’s too much for Rut, who punches Goon to the floor and starts pummeling him. Goon just laughs with every punch, until May shows up. Goon starts yelling that Rut is trying to kill Uncle, and May demands he leave immediately.
And Goon wins yet another round. This isn't looking good for our hero, Shuk.
Rut is back to being Scruff, but he is nothing but sad as walks through the pool area towards the estate entrance. Greed Dad is there to crow on his dungheap, to the extent of denying Naan’s offer to drive Rut off the farm.
So he's not only greedy, selfish, and generally evil - he's also petty. Lovely. What a peach.
May is standing on the upper deck where he used to stand to think about things. As he walks past on the grounds, Rut turns around and they share a look before she turns away. He sighs and keeps walking, as she turns back and watches him leave, trying to hold back her emotions.
Chase after him, May! Aren't you curious? How can you just let him leave without asking for any explanation?
Rut relays all the events to his Veggie family, and Wat is upset that the bad guys appear to be winning. Mom is worried about her friend, stuck in the house without protection, but what can be done? Rut believes that Evil Goon won’t hurt May, since he loves her. Scant comfort, indeed.
Very scant. Like, barely a sliver.
Mom offers to talk to May directly about her son, to clear up any misunderstandings, but Rut isn’t interested. After all, he can only be a shadow of Watit. There’s a poignant moment until Wat interrupts. The best thing for Rut is to stay at the main house with his mom, and he will move into the garden house and take care of it. Okay, Wat, what are you up to?
I love our OTP and want them to be happy, but I have to say, I'm disturbed by how much everyone is focusing on their relationship instead of, yunno, on exposing the criminals and revealing the truth. Love is grand and all, but priorities, people!
At Sad Citrus Farm, May and HH are feeding Uncle when Goon swaggers in. He stands there smiling at May, and she clearly feels a little uncomfortable. Maybe because it’s reptilian in nature? Anyway, Greed Dad pops in like he owns the place, which surprises Goon. But wait! There’s more!
Ohhh boy. Whenever ol' Greedy starts grinning, you know it can't be good.
Pathetic Naree is also in tow, dressed in a pretty white dress. Next thing you know, the registrar is there, along with blank marriage licenses. Shotgun wedding, without the shotgun, and in front of the one person he wants. Hah!
Hahaaaaaaa. Okay, I take it back. I like this very much, if only because it upsets Goon.
Greed Dad announces the little bun in the oven as well, as Goon angrily signs his name. Once the registrar leaves, he hurries over to May to explain, but she graciously congratulates him on his nuptials, and wheels Uncle back to his room.
I think Goon needs to take some etiquette lessons. You don't marry one girl then immediately run over to another. Aside from being bad manners, it's not going to earn him any points with May because it doesn't speak well for his character.
Everyone trickles out until only Greed Dad, Evil Goon, and Pathetic Naree are left. Goon is pissed. But Dad isn't finished. He wants 1 billion baht as a dowry. After all, he should share with his father in law. Goon tries to hedge that they need confirmation by the courts before he can do anything with the properties. Dad promises he will take it all if Goon doesn't cooperate. Gee, do either of you notice Naree is still in the room?
She's such an idiot, but I still feel bad for her. She has no one who actually cares about her.
May is sharing a tea moment with Uncle when Goon again tries to speak with her. They step outside, and Goon cuts to the chase. He doesn't love Pathetic Naree and wants May to be with him. She pushes him away, aghast, especially since he just signed the marriage certificate hours before. He claims Naree is just a gold digger, but but to May, that means nothing. She doesn't love him that way and never will.
You tell 'im, May!
He calls her out on it. Is it because she loves that Rut guy?? She refuses to answer the question and just leaves back to Uncle.
Oh Goon, Goon, Goon. You just don't get it. Even if you get rid of Rut, too, she will never love you. That's not how love works.
Goon and Chard are at the skeet range, next to an artfully arranged collection of revolvers and one high-powered assault carbine. Chard comments that his boss must have lost his temper today. Goon decides to give Chard the task of delivering the dowry to Greed Dad. Something tells me he’s not going to deliver it with a smile and a receipt.
…. I'm okay with that.
Sure enough, Dad is reading the newspaper when the minion ghosts by the window. Dad walks to the area where he saw the movement. Chard is there pointing the gun at his head. Dad tries to plead with him, offering him a safe place to stay or anything else he might want to negotiate. He offers to open his safe and give the gun-toting man everything that’s in it.
Don't listen, Chard! Just SHOOT HIM!!
Chard still has him covered when he opens the safe and pulls out a suitcase filled with money. While Chard is admiring the bills, Dad attacks him. He hits him over the head with a vase and pulls out his own gun, shooting Chard several times. Yay! Bad guy down! Dad kicks him too, just for the sake of it, before he turns back to gloat over the money. But Chard is not quite dead, and manages a perfect head shot from behind. Blood blows out, and Dad is no more.
At first I had mixed feelings because I wanted Chard dead, but I wanted him to kill Dad first. And then I still had mixed feelings because I wanted Dad dead, but I also wanted Chard dead. Anyway, yay! One down and two to go! Line 'em up and knock 'em down!
Crap, Chard had a ballistic vest on. I knew the new dark blue denim shirt was hiding something! He scattered some baht around, probably to set it up like a robbery.
Oh, you're probably right. I just thought he wanted to make it rain.
Pathetic Naree is asleep in Goon’s bed when she gets the phone call. Goon pretends to be supportive of her anguish, the toad.
They make it to Greed House before the body is sheet-wrapped, so she gets a moment to cry before he is taken away. You know, I think Dilok Thong Wattana should be voted Father Most Likely To Die In A Lakorn. Has he ever made through one unscathed? The evidence collected by the police points to random robbery; Evil Goon smiles at the preliminary findings. It’s creepy, though, that he hugs her while standing right where Dad’s brain matter would be.
I'm distracted by her wardrobe, as usual. Doesn't she have any big girl dresses? Admittedly, I wouldn't be thinking too clearly about my outfit choice if my father had been suddenly and brutally murdered, but I still don't think an off-the-shoulder sundress would be the first thing I'd grab.
Tippy is at the farm to talk to May. Did Rut really leave? She comments that her best friend looks completely gloomy and sad, maybe because she misses him? (Or maybe because her husband is dead, and she's grieving. Priorities, ladies.) May asks Tippy not to mention that name again. She tries to brighten things a bit by talking about Goon’s precipitous marriage and pregnancy, but that doesn't exactly cheer May up either.
I guess they don't really have anything happy to talk about right now.
Her phone rings, and the pair find out about Greed Dad’s death from Goon. She promises to take care of everything at Citrus Farm. Tippy feels sad for Pathetic Naree; just a short time between her happiness and this. May wonders about the timing.
Suspicious, isn't it? You should look into that.
At Greed House, Naree is inconsolable, hugging her dad’s picture and crying. She happens to open his desk drawer and finds a nondescript envelope. Hmm. It has an attached letter that basically says to open in the event of his suspicious demise. So Dad was hedging his bets knowing he was working with evil people. He also installed security cameras throughout his house.
That's twice in one episode that I've liked something he's done! Do I have a fever or something?
At Veggie Farm, Rut motors up to the garden house to talk with Wat. The door is locked though, so he starts pounding on it. And who is home?? While Wat and Boobs both comfortably snuggled on the bed. Boobs is the first to wake up and go downstairs, irritated by the incessant knocking.
Wat is just a little too slow to realize what was going to happen as Boobs opens the door to see a living, breathing Dead First Love on the doorstop. She throws herself into Wat’s arms as Rut mimes what the pair was probably doing upstairs in his bed. LOL
Hahahahaha!!! Finally, some humor again! Oh, it feels good, it really does.
It takes her touching him before realizing that Rut is very much alive, and then she throws herself into his arms instead. Is this a good time to mention she is only wearing a towel? Poor Rut doesn’t know what to do.
Awkwaaaaaard. But oh so funny!
A short while later, she’s fully dressed and angry at Wat. She slaps him to make her point: he lied about Rut’s death and used that to get her into bed. After the third slap, he tells her enough, but still gets one more slap for his pains. He sits down, defeated, and tells her to go back to the other man. She gets all coy; after all, aren’t they lovers now? It’s not like she can go to anyone else now. They end up billing and cooing while Rut smiles at their antics, before he remembers the other place.
This relationship is disturbing. O_o
May is administering to Uncle when Goon shows up yet again. May essentially tells him to take care of Naree especially during this period of mourning; Goon brushes it off like an annoying fly and announces his intent to divorce Pathetic Naree in order to marry May.
Uh… you know you're not making yourself look like a good potential mate, right, Goon?
May tries to talk some sense into him; after all, they have a baby together. The disgusting excuse for a man claims he was bearding for Chard who is the actual father. And he won’t live with someone he doesn’t care for. Oh, this can’t be good.
Is he going to kill Naree and the baby, too? I wouldn't put it past him at this point.
FINAL COMMENTS
One episode left, and it looks like Goon is heading for Crazyville Convict. Most lakorns allow last minute redemption for even the bad guys, but I'm still hoping Koon and Chard end up slabbed in a temple somewhere. There are so many story bits that I know will never be explained and I feel sad. Still, the separation of our OTP is very brief, so I can live with the dangling plot threads, I suppose.
It makes me very sad that this show didn't use its time better because the setup is so full of potential for humor and pathos. When I think about what might have been, I'm disappointed. I can enjoy the show for what it is, but it could have been even better.
I'm curious that police haven't had any part in the investigation of Watit's death, but maybe that is also glossed over as we accelerate to our reconciliation. Where I come from, a home death, even of natural causes, still requires police presence, even if it is cut-and-dried. And with Uncle incapacitated, there is no way the Veggie family can completely explain his location in their garden house.
Veggie Mom was also shot that night. I would think that the police would be very interested in the whole case.
Uncle should snap out of it. We all know he was single-minded in purpose for his son, running over anyone and everything to secure Watit's happiness. But it's high time he snap out of his funk when the other people he cares for are being manipulated and hurt. And poor Tippy, friend to the end. Why couldn't she have romance too, darn it! [sigh]
Of all the things I'm disappointed about, that might be at the top of the list. Tippy is fantastic, but she hasn't been given any development. Even Bood got a side story!
Before we go, here's one more gif of the Disney Princess for our faithful squeeglet, trotwood! Isn't View gorgeous?
becca: This is a sad episode, even if it didn't always make sense. I hope the good guys can set everything right in time to give us some cuteness again before the show ends.
EPISODE 14
Warin is packing up Veggie Mom’s stuff for her discharge from the hospital. Mom asks about Uncle Bulldozer, and Rut has to tell her of his condition. She muses that he loved Watit a lot, and is now worried about Rut staying at Citrus Farm and possibly in danger.
Rut is adamant, though, that he will stay there until Uncle and May are both safe, especially with Uncle’s current condition. I’m thinking maybe he will actually start investigating. Veggie Mom reluctantly agrees, given that Uncle has kept an eye on her family all these years. But she wants him to promise to be very very careful.
Does Rut know how to be careful? Sometimes I wonder. I hope he at least has a plan this time.
Rut finally returns to Citrus Farm. Uncle is unresponsive and sitting in a wheelchair. Rut explains he is awake but is unaware. Everyone at the farm looks sad as he wheels the older man into the house. Well, everyone but Evil Goon, who is happy happy happy.
All he's missing is a moustache to twirl as he giggles.
Evil Goon shows up with his Cheshire Cat smile, snarking at the beauty of two people helping each other take care of a vegetable. Rut warns him not to speak ill of his father, but Goon pounces on the word. Can he be a ‘father’ if he’s just a lump on a chair? May is appalled at the cousin’s words, while Rut gets into a shouting match. Goon challenges him to prove that he has any right to speak as if he is the owner of the farm.
Fight! Fight! Fight!
Then it gets physical. They start trading blows until May forces her way between them. She yells at Goon to stop behaving this way to his younger sibling.
Watching Rut take a swing at Goon is soooo satisfying.
Goon sneers that he’s forced to call Watit “brother” because of everyone else, but one day, she will know differently. And that day he will protect neither Black Hair (FakeWatit) or White Hair (Uncle). May demands to know what he means by this cryptic statement, but Goon just pushes himself away. Uncle twitches, almost like Watit in his final suffocating moments.Ack! What a lovely comparison. NOT. I may not be Uncle Bulldozer's biggest fan, but I certainly don't want him to die!
At Greed House, Naree refuses to help take care of Uncle, knowing that her presence is some part of her dad’s and her lover’s scheme to steal the farm. He goes lovey-dovey; he doesn't want his inheritance to go to a fake, he loves her since she is his only family. He promises to take care of her. And she believes him and agrees to return to Citrus Farm. Her EEEdiocy and his EEEvilness are in perfect balance.
*sigh* Every time I feel just a little - just a teensy bit - of hope for her, she turns around and does something stupid again. Don't listen to the villain, Naree!
May is passing her fears to Tippy, that the two cousins are getting more and more aggressive to each other. And all the strange happenings, too. May is convinced the two guys are hiding something from her, something they both know but she doesn't. Tippy muses that the pair used to fight over May, but now they have other issues that they argue over.
Hey, remember when May was suspicious of Rut and had a plan to confirm if he was really Watit or not? I wish we'd stuck with that.
Horrid Housekeeper is happy to see Naree back to take care of Uncle. The younger woman is surprised to see Uncle’s condition. May promises to help with his care, but Naree growls no, she can do 24-hour care perfectly fine, thank you. HH adds to the tension and barks that Naree is a nurse and May is just a nosy biatch that sticks her nose where it doesn't belong. Stop picking on our Disney Princess you nasty mean creature! Rut finally steps up and ends the accusations, and asks Naree to take great care of Uncle.
I suspect HH has a problem. Her brain is missing. After all this time, you'd think that she would have realized that May isn't a bad person, but nope.
That night (already??) Naree steps back as Evil Goon tries to force Uncle to sign a new will. Um, Goon, he doesn’t respond to anyone, so yelling at him to make a voluntary movement is pretty pointless, no matter how many times you yell.
Okay, so HH isn't the only one without a brain. Off to the Wizard of Oz with you three! And remember to pick up some hearts while you're there!
Rut knocks on Uncle’s door, wanting to speak with Naree. Goon hides. But Rut can see the scattered medications and signs that all is not calm in Uncle’s bedroom. Naree covers and says she dropped the medicine tray. Rut wonders why Uncle isn't prepped for bed; he also sees the fallen ink pen on the carpet. Naree can’t come up with anything plausible and just repeats herself.
If you repeat it enough times, Naree… he still won't believe it.
Suspicious now, Rut starts looking around the entire room. Goon sneaks up behind him with a ceramic vase. Oh, snap! But Rut leaves before Goon can knock him out. Before Goon leaves, he demands that Naree figure out a way to get that affidavit signed.
In his own (Watit’s) room, Rut looks down and smiles at a sleeping May. He spends some time stroking her hair before kissing her goodnight. Once he’s down for the count, May opens up her eyes, smiles at the sleeping man, and gives him a kiss. Now they both are awake. Shenanigans!! Uummmm! Nope, but they do snuggle together.
Aww, they're so cute.
The next morning it’s Naree’s turn to get Uncle to sign the will. She pleads with him, but, again, no response. So she goes ahead and forges his signature. Pathetic Naree, you are officially on the Dark Path now.I don't understand how she thinks this will work to her advantage. Anyone who has spent any time with Goon can tell that he still has his sights set on May.
I'm sure they'd be more than happy to kill him, if the opportunity arises. Let's hope it doesn't.
May is feeding Uncle when HH shows up and tells Rut and May there is a meeting scheduled for tomorrow at 8:00 am. But she doesn't know what it’s about.
That can't be good.
The next day, Rut, May, Koon, Naree, Kitja, and a shyster are together in the parlor. Goon starts with a pious speech that the farm’s management needs some clarification, and the attorney is there to explain the will in case ‘something’ happens.
PLOT HOLE ALERT: If the lawyer is Uncle Bulldozer's attorney, with the confidential privileges and such, wouldn't he be suspicious of a brand new will, when the person in question clearly is missing his faculties. And if he isn't Uncle’s lawyer, but someone Greed Dad found under a rock, he wouldn't have the official vetted copy of the will anyway. And the will would be sealed until a death certificate is presented. So this whole scene seems a little forced and unreal. Then again, that room has the television set tucked in a corner where you would never be able to watch it, so perhaps this is just all a surreal, peyote-induced dream sequence.
Plot twist! It's all a dream, and when Scruff wakes up, he will be living happily back on the farm with Wifey May and half a dozen kiddos!
Rut questions the will, since Uncle never said anything about it. Greed Dad says it was created before the marriage. But May rebuts that Uncle promised any transfers of properties or inheritance would be done by his own hands, and not by a will. Greed Dad implies that the will was made to prevent her from taking any more of the estate than the monies to bond out her brother.
Pfft. Wasn't that generous of you, Goon. He must be trying to stay on her good side.
He expects to get it back when she happily marries him. Blech.
Blech, indeed.
Rut can’t stay still, and finally interrupts the proceedings and calls BS. Greed Dad pops up, pretending anger that his signature as witness isn’t good enough for legitimacy. Ah, and the shyster is not the farm’s legal team. Rut yells that Uncle intended everything to go to “Watit”. Whups.
Uh-oh. He never was a good actor.
The secret gets spilled out, and Goon presents an entire dossier on Rut and his family. Driver’s licenses, property information, each family member, everything. May frantically flips through the binder, and recalls the picture on his phone with RealWatit in the background. With tear-filled eyes, she demands an explanation from the man in front of her.
This looks bad. This looks very bad. Without Uncle to explain, everyone will trust Goon when he paints Rut as a scheming con-artist - and killer, now that Watit is dead.
Rut desperately tries to backpedal and explain, but May is way past being pacified. She flat out asks him: Are you my Watit? His lack of answer is damning, and she all but screams the question why. Evil Goon, of course, has the answer; money. If it wasn’t for the inheritance, Watit wouldn't have died. May is in shock – died? Her husband… is dead?Oops. There it is.
Goon keeps pressing while the wound is fresh. The man before her killed her husband and rendered Uncle to his current state. Rut can do nothing but punch Goon (YASSS) to try and stop the words. He begs May to listen to him, but she just slaps him. She cries as she asks him, what did he see her as? Aww, May, don’t feel like an idiot.
I don't like seeing Goon get his way! Not at all! But I do understand her confusion and anger.
Poor Rut, he just stares at May as Goon offers to call the police and have him escorted off the farm. A moment later, May runs out of the room, and Rut chases after her. She manages to make it to the room and lock the door before Rut can get there. She collapses on the bed, crying, as he pounds on the door and begs her to listen. It choked me up just to see his face and hear her sobs.I'm getting teary-eyed again, just looking at the gif. Just last night they were happy and in love, and now May's whole world has been turned upside down. And poor Rut must feel like he's lost everything now: his brother, his uncle, and now his love.
Yep. And since no one knows anything but what Good tells them, it's going to be very hard for Rut to convince them of the truth.
Tippy tries to console her, but May is also feeling like twelve kinds of fool for believing Rut to be Watit despite all the evidence to the contrary. Evidence that she saw but never connected. Tippy begs her not to blame herself. May has decided to stay at Citrus Farm in gratitude for everything uncle did for her Flower Family, and continue to take care of him. Tippy will give her strength and support.
Uh… that's nice. Doesn't really solve anything right now, though.
Rut is wandering around the living room. (They're just letting him roam loose? What happened to calling the police?) He picks up a picture of Watit, and asks for forgiveness. He looks up and May is there. They stare for a moment before she tries to bolt. He catches her and tries again to clarify the situation, but she just pleads with him to stop hurting her and playing with her emotions.
He keeps trying. Does she remember when she told him that people who love each other must trust each other? And don’t they love each other? But she shakes herself loose. The man she loves is Watit, not Rut. He calls out as she flees, but she doesn't stop.
I'm not sure that "we love and trust each other" was the best way to go in this situation. She's just learned that he's not the man she thought he was and that that man - her husband - is dead. Reminding her about all the times she said she loved him seems like rubbing salt in the wound when he should be down on his knees asking for a chance to explain everything.
Alone in her bedroom, May looks at the couple photograph on the night stand and sadly moves it facedown. She flashes back to her wedding day, and all the adorkable moments with her real husband at the piano, in the garden….
I'm sad that they killed him. He was on his way to being a truly nice guy, and he could have had an interesting trajectory.
Greed Dad is ready for his next bit of business, but Goon obviously doesn't want to have anything further to do with either member of the Greed family. But over a couple cold beers, Dad finally tells Evil Goon about his implant in Pathetic Naree’s womb, and demands that he marry his daughter immediately. Yes, Goon, feel that noose around your neck! He takes off to his truck and drives away, while Dad gloats that he set up everything beautifully for his daughter and grandchild. Pathetic Naree is sad he has to be forced, but to Dad, who cares about love when the marriage license is good enough.What a terrible excuse for a parent! I wanna punch him. Can I punch him?
Naree gets ready to head back to Citrus Farm, but Dad forbids her to return and take care of Uncle. Her job is done, and she doesn't have to take care of the old man anymore. Uh, oh, what does he mean?
May is with Uncle in his bedroom. HH brings porridge, and for once, is she nice? Woooooow. The housekeeper’s eyes are red as she gently asks May how she is doing. She breaks down, wondering why bad things happened to good people. She calls May pitiful for living with a liar all this time. May puts on a brave front; that imposter means nothing to her, and now her sole focus is Uncle. HH thanks her for not abandoning her benefactor, and apologizes for all her mean behavior. May graciously forgives, of course.
I am less willing to forgive.
It's a requirement for all Disney Princesses.
I always knew I'd fail the test.
In the bedroom, Rut is packing his things. May walks in on him and turns to leave, but Rut quietly stops her. She doesn't have to leave; he’s already packed his stuff and is ready to go. She turns around at the news, and he continues. He can’t repair what happened but he wants her promise to take care of Uncle. And he will always be available if she needs him. She doesn't say a word, still trying to hold back tears. Finally, he asks her to take care of herself and walks out, backpack in hand.
It's… so sad. Stop! Try to explain! Defend yourself, Rut. Please.
May turns as if to stop him, but the next scene has Rut outside on the patio all night, sitting by the flowers and remembering her rejection. In her room, May has another breakdown / crying jag.
Rut returns back to the house the next morning, and HH is ministering to Uncle. He appeals to her for a chance to say goodbye to Uncle. She glares, threatens dire punishment if he hurts anyone, and leaves. Rut apologizes and thanks the older man for everything. Just then, Evil Goon walks in and overhears.Okay, let's pause right here for a minute because I have a question. Actually two. A) Why one earth would she leave Rut alone with Uncle if she believes he killed Watit? And B) If they all think he killed Watit, why is no one calling the police? They're just going to let him go and forget about it?
I dunno, magic?
Evil Goon thinks it laughable that Rut is talking to that crazy old man; Rut grabs him by the lapels. Calm down, Rut! You’re playing into his hands! Goon laughs that he can talk at and do anything he wants to Uncle, since he’s the bloodline and Rut isn't. Rut swears he will expose the person who attacked Watit; Goon's eyes glow with unholy fervor as he freely admits to doing every bad deed. And to prove the point, he pushes Uncle’s wheelchair over, spilling the man onto the floor.
Bad, Goon! BAD GOON!! That was not very nice.
That’s too much for Rut, who punches Goon to the floor and starts pummeling him. Goon just laughs with every punch, until May shows up. Goon starts yelling that Rut is trying to kill Uncle, and May demands he leave immediately.
And Goon wins yet another round. This isn't looking good for our hero, Shuk.
Rut is back to being Scruff, but he is nothing but sad as walks through the pool area towards the estate entrance. Greed Dad is there to crow on his dungheap, to the extent of denying Naan’s offer to drive Rut off the farm.So he's not only greedy, selfish, and generally evil - he's also petty. Lovely. What a peach.
May is standing on the upper deck where he used to stand to think about things. As he walks past on the grounds, Rut turns around and they share a look before she turns away. He sighs and keeps walking, as she turns back and watches him leave, trying to hold back her emotions.
Chase after him, May! Aren't you curious? How can you just let him leave without asking for any explanation?
Rut relays all the events to his Veggie family, and Wat is upset that the bad guys appear to be winning. Mom is worried about her friend, stuck in the house without protection, but what can be done? Rut believes that Evil Goon won’t hurt May, since he loves her. Scant comfort, indeed.
Very scant. Like, barely a sliver.
Mom offers to talk to May directly about her son, to clear up any misunderstandings, but Rut isn’t interested. After all, he can only be a shadow of Watit. There’s a poignant moment until Wat interrupts. The best thing for Rut is to stay at the main house with his mom, and he will move into the garden house and take care of it. Okay, Wat, what are you up to?
I love our OTP and want them to be happy, but I have to say, I'm disturbed by how much everyone is focusing on their relationship instead of, yunno, on exposing the criminals and revealing the truth. Love is grand and all, but priorities, people!
At Sad Citrus Farm, May and HH are feeding Uncle when Goon swaggers in. He stands there smiling at May, and she clearly feels a little uncomfortable. Maybe because it’s reptilian in nature? Anyway, Greed Dad pops in like he owns the place, which surprises Goon. But wait! There’s more!
Ohhh boy. Whenever ol' Greedy starts grinning, you know it can't be good.
Pathetic Naree is also in tow, dressed in a pretty white dress. Next thing you know, the registrar is there, along with blank marriage licenses. Shotgun wedding, without the shotgun, and in front of the one person he wants. Hah!
Hahaaaaaaa. Okay, I take it back. I like this very much, if only because it upsets Goon.
Greed Dad announces the little bun in the oven as well, as Goon angrily signs his name. Once the registrar leaves, he hurries over to May to explain, but she graciously congratulates him on his nuptials, and wheels Uncle back to his room.
I think Goon needs to take some etiquette lessons. You don't marry one girl then immediately run over to another. Aside from being bad manners, it's not going to earn him any points with May because it doesn't speak well for his character.
Everyone trickles out until only Greed Dad, Evil Goon, and Pathetic Naree are left. Goon is pissed. But Dad isn't finished. He wants 1 billion baht as a dowry. After all, he should share with his father in law. Goon tries to hedge that they need confirmation by the courts before he can do anything with the properties. Dad promises he will take it all if Goon doesn't cooperate. Gee, do either of you notice Naree is still in the room?
She's such an idiot, but I still feel bad for her. She has no one who actually cares about her.
May is sharing a tea moment with Uncle when Goon again tries to speak with her. They step outside, and Goon cuts to the chase. He doesn't love Pathetic Naree and wants May to be with him. She pushes him away, aghast, especially since he just signed the marriage certificate hours before. He claims Naree is just a gold digger, but but to May, that means nothing. She doesn't love him that way and never will.
You tell 'im, May!
He calls her out on it. Is it because she loves that Rut guy?? She refuses to answer the question and just leaves back to Uncle.
Oh Goon, Goon, Goon. You just don't get it. Even if you get rid of Rut, too, she will never love you. That's not how love works.
Goon and Chard are at the skeet range, next to an artfully arranged collection of revolvers and one high-powered assault carbine. Chard comments that his boss must have lost his temper today. Goon decides to give Chard the task of delivering the dowry to Greed Dad. Something tells me he’s not going to deliver it with a smile and a receipt.
…. I'm okay with that.
Sure enough, Dad is reading the newspaper when the minion ghosts by the window. Dad walks to the area where he saw the movement. Chard is there pointing the gun at his head. Dad tries to plead with him, offering him a safe place to stay or anything else he might want to negotiate. He offers to open his safe and give the gun-toting man everything that’s in it.
Don't listen, Chard! Just SHOOT HIM!!
Chard still has him covered when he opens the safe and pulls out a suitcase filled with money. While Chard is admiring the bills, Dad attacks him. He hits him over the head with a vase and pulls out his own gun, shooting Chard several times. Yay! Bad guy down! Dad kicks him too, just for the sake of it, before he turns back to gloat over the money. But Chard is not quite dead, and manages a perfect head shot from behind. Blood blows out, and Dad is no more.
At first I had mixed feelings because I wanted Chard dead, but I wanted him to kill Dad first. And then I still had mixed feelings because I wanted Dad dead, but I also wanted Chard dead. Anyway, yay! One down and two to go! Line 'em up and knock 'em down!
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| Knock 'em down? Or knock 'em back? |
Oh, you're probably right. I just thought he wanted to make it rain.
They make it to Greed House before the body is sheet-wrapped, so she gets a moment to cry before he is taken away. You know, I think Dilok Thong Wattana should be voted Father Most Likely To Die In A Lakorn. Has he ever made through one unscathed? The evidence collected by the police points to random robbery; Evil Goon smiles at the preliminary findings. It’s creepy, though, that he hugs her while standing right where Dad’s brain matter would be.
I'm distracted by her wardrobe, as usual. Doesn't she have any big girl dresses? Admittedly, I wouldn't be thinking too clearly about my outfit choice if my father had been suddenly and brutally murdered, but I still don't think an off-the-shoulder sundress would be the first thing I'd grab.
Tippy is at the farm to talk to May. Did Rut really leave? She comments that her best friend looks completely gloomy and sad, maybe because she misses him? (Or maybe because her husband is dead, and she's grieving. Priorities, ladies.) May asks Tippy not to mention that name again. She tries to brighten things a bit by talking about Goon’s precipitous marriage and pregnancy, but that doesn't exactly cheer May up either.
I guess they don't really have anything happy to talk about right now.
Her phone rings, and the pair find out about Greed Dad’s death from Goon. She promises to take care of everything at Citrus Farm. Tippy feels sad for Pathetic Naree; just a short time between her happiness and this. May wonders about the timing.
Suspicious, isn't it? You should look into that.
At Greed House, Naree is inconsolable, hugging her dad’s picture and crying. She happens to open his desk drawer and finds a nondescript envelope. Hmm. It has an attached letter that basically says to open in the event of his suspicious demise. So Dad was hedging his bets knowing he was working with evil people. He also installed security cameras throughout his house.
That's twice in one episode that I've liked something he's done! Do I have a fever or something?
At Veggie Farm, Rut motors up to the garden house to talk with Wat. The door is locked though, so he starts pounding on it. And who is home?? While Wat and Boobs both comfortably snuggled on the bed. Boobs is the first to wake up and go downstairs, irritated by the incessant knocking.
Wat is just a little too slow to realize what was going to happen as Boobs opens the door to see a living, breathing Dead First Love on the doorstop. She throws herself into Wat’s arms as Rut mimes what the pair was probably doing upstairs in his bed. LOL
Hahahahaha!!! Finally, some humor again! Oh, it feels good, it really does.
It takes her touching him before realizing that Rut is very much alive, and then she throws herself into his arms instead. Is this a good time to mention she is only wearing a towel? Poor Rut doesn’t know what to do.
Awkwaaaaaard. But oh so funny!
A short while later, she’s fully dressed and angry at Wat. She slaps him to make her point: he lied about Rut’s death and used that to get her into bed. After the third slap, he tells her enough, but still gets one more slap for his pains. He sits down, defeated, and tells her to go back to the other man. She gets all coy; after all, aren’t they lovers now? It’s not like she can go to anyone else now. They end up billing and cooing while Rut smiles at their antics, before he remembers the other place.
This relationship is disturbing. O_o
May is administering to Uncle when Goon shows up yet again. May essentially tells him to take care of Naree especially during this period of mourning; Goon brushes it off like an annoying fly and announces his intent to divorce Pathetic Naree in order to marry May.Uh… you know you're not making yourself look like a good potential mate, right, Goon?
May tries to talk some sense into him; after all, they have a baby together. The disgusting excuse for a man claims he was bearding for Chard who is the actual father. And he won’t live with someone he doesn’t care for. Oh, this can’t be good.
Is he going to kill Naree and the baby, too? I wouldn't put it past him at this point.
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| May: This guy NUTS! Where's the exit? |
FINAL COMMENTS
One episode left, and it looks like Goon is heading for Crazyville Convict. Most lakorns allow last minute redemption for even the bad guys, but I'm still hoping Koon and Chard end up slabbed in a temple somewhere. There are so many story bits that I know will never be explained and I feel sad. Still, the separation of our OTP is very brief, so I can live with the dangling plot threads, I suppose.
It makes me very sad that this show didn't use its time better because the setup is so full of potential for humor and pathos. When I think about what might have been, I'm disappointed. I can enjoy the show for what it is, but it could have been even better.
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| Goon thinks he's perfectly sane. He doesn't know what you're talking about, Shuk. |
Veggie Mom was also shot that night. I would think that the police would be very interested in the whole case.
Of all the things I'm disappointed about, that might be at the top of the list. Tippy is fantastic, but she hasn't been given any development. Even Bood got a side story!
Before we go, here's one more gif of the Disney Princess for our faithful squeeglet, trotwood! Isn't View gorgeous?