1. Another episode, another flashback

We’re back to that fateful day, December 3, 2005. Time: 18:00 pm.

We learn that Jaein’s dad, Yoon TaeHa, knows young Sungmo. He attends to Sungmo’s bloodied ankle and suspects that the teen’s being abused. He wants to report it to the police.

Notice young Sungmo’s look of surprise when Yoon TaeHa mentions the police? Why doesn’t he want the police to know? One of the things we discussed here in the blog is the possibility that the stalker was affiliated with the police or sufficiently familiar with police work as he was able to elude the police. As Jisoo’s friend points out in Episode 4, “He didn’t leave a trace.”

Anyway, back to the story.

Sungmo defends his mom, “My mom would never do such a thing.” Note: He doesn’t mention the mystery man/stalker. Until now, we don’t know Sungmo’s relation to him, so let’s keep our options open. He can be his father, his step-father, his mom’s lover, etc.

The intriguing part here is when Jaein’s dad lectures young Sungmo, “Leaving the (wound) untreated will make it fester more. What seems like nothing might end up killing you,” and Sungmo answers, “I didn’t know because it didn’t hurt.”

Huh? Is he high on drugs? What does he mean? The blood seeped through his sock. Does he have a high tolerance for pain? Or is he used to the pain? Or is it due to his lack of noradrenaline thing? 🤨

Dad’s quote is to be expected from a fatherly figure, but I think Sungmo’s unusual reaction is something we should store for future character analysis.

Another interesting character detail: When young Jaein describes the Christmas tree as pretty, young Sungmo begins to rattle off the definition as if he’s a walking dictionary. This fascination with words was on display earlier in Episode 5 when he read the definitions of love and obsession.

I don’t know where the writer’s going with Sungmo’s mania for words. Maybe it’s a genetic problem; maybe it’s psychological problem stemming from abuse. I don’t know. But his hypersensitivity to word meanings is an interesting contrast to Lee Ahn’s indifference to words. Did you notice that?

At first, I thought it was just a running joke that Ahn mixes up his words. But now, I’m beginning to think that An’s word problems may be due to his brain trauma. He’s substituting a word for one that sounds almost similar, not because he’s lazy or stupid, but because of his injury thirteen years ago. I hope this language issue isn’t degenerative as he improves his psychometric skills.

Whatever is the reason for both Sungmo’s and Ahn’s disabilities, they’re definitely a match for each other.

2. Lifelong mystery

Detective Jisoo protests Prosecutor Kang’s plan to make the two kids work together. “Why are you purposely forcing them together?” Again?! Unlike Jisoo, we aren’t surprised by Sungmo’s action because we foresaw that from the chalk artwork. His hands were trying to engineer a meeting between Lee Ahn and Jaein.

Sungmo tries to explain, “If An reveals something with his psychometry, I think it’ll be the truth about the fire from 13 years ago. Officer Yoon believes that her father is innocent, and Ahn wishes to solve mysteries using his powers.” Despite his explanation, Jisoo worries that one of the kids will be heartbroken upon learning their real connection to the fire.

We know that she worries needlessly because Sungmo knows that Jaein’s dad is innocent. To her, Sungmo sounds cryptic when he observes, “In the past, I didn’t know what it was like to have your heart broken…(“What?” Jisoo interrupts.)…but even so certain truths must be revealed.”

It’s telling that Jisoo’s interest is at first piqued when he mentions a broken heart but she remains focused on the investigation. She doesn’t follow up with questions regarding his broken heart. Instead, she asks him a spate of questions on the case, “Do you believe that her father is innocent, too? Could the culprit who stabbed An be the arsonist? Who on earth is that person?”

Sungmo replies, “That’s been a lifelong mystery of mine. Wanting to solve that so quickly is pure greed.”

I think he’s inwardly laughing at her impatience. Remember? For two years, he spent his weekends working on this Nursing Home fire mystery. He’s stumped by the mystery yet here comes Ms. Meticulous Detective (as he calls her) wanting all her questions answered right away.

She asks him, “May I try to solve it though?” and he counters with a question of his own, “Will you not, if I stop you?”

He knows her; he knows that she’s rebellious and persistent. She answers, “No, I’ll dig further.”

To me, Sungmo’s conversation with Jisoo is revealing. He indulges Jisoo. I find it rather sweet that he yields to her but she’s either ignoring him (because of their past history when he “rejected” her) or just plain clueless.

Every time she wants something done or when she has a hunch about something, he gives in and helps her out. Like this scene in Episode 3:

Or this scene in this episode:

Sigh. That’s why I find Hyung so swoon-worthy. He supports her.

Sungmo is not above circumventing procedures and regulations if Jisoo wants something done.

Hmmm… When I think of his previous actions, it strikes me now that he’s been flirting with her when he said these.

From Episode 2:

Like why on earth would he say that? Who asked him anyway to share that info? Was he trying to make her jealous?

And from Episode 3. Why was he joking about a ring at that moment?

So yes, I think he likes her.

3. Nosebleeds, fainting spells and hyperventilation

I thought this scene at the bus stop was funny. Lee Ahn doesn’t want to take the bus but Jaein wants him to challenge himself. But Jaein then wonders if he gets nosebleeds when he focuses, but faints when he focuses even more.

This is funny because it makes him look like a faulty, fragile machine. That is, he can’t be “overworked.” My theory here is that when he witnesses or reads the moment of the murder, he too experiences the pain of the fatal blow. He not only sees the death scene, he also feels the moment of death.

Lee Ahn frets if he’ll die if he focuses harder, and he imagines his brain being studied and investigated by scientists.

He begs her to allow him to take a taxi home. He looks like that little kid that he was 13 years ago, whining for a puppy on his birthday.

Been there, done that.

As a mom of boys, I know Jaein’s going to give in when he pouts like that. It’s hard to resist a cutiepie. But to her credit, Jaein says that the taxi ride is only a reward for Ahn’s good performance with the psychometry that night. She means that she relented to him but starting tomorrow, she’ll pick up on all the things he hates to do for training.

Although I like the idea of her whipping Lee Ahn into shape, I also can’t help liking Lee Ahn the way he is right now. Despite his aggravating, irritating, maddening childish behavior on plenty of occasions, he’s 100% NAMJA just when Jaein needs him to be tough and dependable.

For instance, when she suddenly begins hyperventilating, he knows exactly what to do. He doesn’t wrings his fingers or run screaming, “Otoke?!” in panic mode. He quickly wraps her up protectively in his winter coat. The point here is that she’s breathing out too much carbon dioxide, but the winter coat over her head helps her rebreathe the same carbon dioxide like she would have had if she had a brown paper bag available.

His reaction is so different from hers when he collapsed in the autopsy room. She panicked.

Note: In real life however, when somebody’s hyperventilating, it’s best to know the cause of the hyperventilation first. If the person’s having an asthma episode or a heart attack, breathing into a brown paper bag or a coat is not a good idea.

4. Candy scene

This is a cute one. Well done, writer! I don’t think I’ve seen this kind of scene done before.

Lee Ahn’s been bribing kids to do his dirty deed…errr…his romantic deed for him. Since he can’t hug her, he tells the kids to hug her for him. (sneaky)

Ahn: Well done, my friend, well done. Here (handing a lollipop), you eat one. And this one…give it to the prettiest noona outside. Got it? This noona is very sad right now, it would be nice if you could give her a hug but…you don’t need to if you don’t want to. Okay?
Boy: Then you can give her a hug.
Ahn: I’m asking you guys because I can’t.
Boy: Can I just eat both like you?

Ahn: (lolol he’s stooping to the child’s level now and scaring him) Then all your teeth will rot! Have you ever been to the dentist? You’ll realize how great the children’s hospital is. You worked hard. (or Good job!) Go!

Jaein: (overhearing him) I don’t like the dentist either.
Ahn: Oh, you’ve arrived?
Jaien: Let’s go home.
Ahn: Here. You guys eat all this.

lol. He’s given Jaein the yellow lollipops, too.

The reason I like this scene, and the other scene when he helped out the small girl who vandalized the car, is because it shows a side of Lee Ahn that’s guaranteed to charm the socks off Jaein.

Jaein was very much cherished by her father. When we sift through her flashback, there’s one constant theme: her father doted on her. Take the Christmas tree, for example. She wanted the yellow star hanging up on the tallest branch, and her father did just that.

To me, it makes sense that she’ll fall in love with a man who possesses the same gentleness as her father. She saw that in him as she listened to him, in Episode 5, warn the little girl about keeping secrets. Then, watching him interact with the kids in the hospital will undoubtedly impress her. She gets exasperated with his lack of book-smarts or his IQ, but when it comes to his emotional sensitivity or EQ, Lee Ahn is ahead of the curve.

5. ET communing with his index finger

This scene was funny enough because we knew EXACTLY where he got the idea.

We knew that, given his “delayed” thinking, he would wonder where on earth did he “hear” this conversation before. It’s deja vu. Right, @agdr03?

But the reason I was laughing about this scene is that drawing of the chili pepper in the background.  I encircled it for you.

I don’t know if this is deliberate, subversive or subliminal but the Korean word for chili pepper (“gochu”) is the slang for penis. See it?

credit as tagged

So yes, when he pondered what “the most sensitive place to touch is…” I SAW the visual innuendo. It was right beside Jaein.

I’ve to admit that I laughed till my sides hurt. This show’s outrageously funny.

6. Her aunt and the cop

It’s obvious that her aunt likes the cop. Did you notice the lunchbox she packed for him??!

Her aunt’s lunch box:

Jaein’s lunch box:

The cop’s lunch box:

Did you see the number of kimbaps? Double the number of kimbaps. I laughed too when I saw it.

The aunt’s so hoity-toity with the cop but she’s sweet on him. I think that’s one of the many things I like about the shows. On the surface, all three couples don’t appear at all romantic but underneath their gruff exterior, they’re affectionate and tender.

But Jaein’s sweet, too. She immediately wants to share her lunch with Lee Ahn.

7. Her mini-confessions

I think Lee Ahn can be particularly dense when a girl is already sending out “feelers”. To me, Jaein has already confessed to him a number of times in this episode but each time, he asks her what does she mean. Let me count, okay?

One, while waiting for the cab —

Ahn: It was two years ago. Two long years. It would be weird to remember.
JI: I remember everything about you from two years ago.

They look at each other.

Ahn: What is that supposed to mean?

lol. Facepalm, Lee Ahn! What on earth can that possibly mean? She’s waiting for him to acknowledge it but he just stares back at her.

Slow pick-up time.

JI: (staring at him seriously for like an eternity, then smiling wryly) You were really weird.

Ahn: Ah. ah.

And they both laugh it off.

Two, at the police station, they were talking about Daebong’s wallet ruse —

JI: When you like someone, you have the heart of wanting to do anything for them. If Daebong’s feelings from two years ago are still there….

Ahn just stares at her. But I don’t think he understands the connection.

Look: Jaein may complain often about helping him out because it will decrease her “level of competence” when she hangs out with him. And she may stress it that she’s only helping him for her promotion. But we know that lady doth protest too much. She doesn’t want a promotion by using other people.

Three, when they witnessed Sohyun reject Daebong’s offer of money —

JI: I knew that would happen.
Ahn: So, Daebong deliberately dropped his wallet for Sohyun to give her compensation money? This is what you think?
JI: Isn’t it? Right there. (lol. They just witnessed the event outside their window) In front of the daycare center. The place where Sohyun walks by. He left it there for show.
Ahn: That Daebong isn’t smart enough to plan deliberately dropping his wallet, I’m willing to bet my two wrists on it.
JI: Yah! Those wrists aren’t just yours anymore. You can’t just bet them on anything.
Ahn: Why aren’t they mine?
Ji: Let’s call it, for now, a “shared property” (sounds like “Gong Yoo” the actor who starred in Goblin).
Ahn: Shared…?? Okay.

My Korean is non-existent but I think Lee Ahn said, “Gong Yoo” then he was about to say, “Dokkae—” for “Dokkaebi” which means “Goblin.”  That’s how Jaein suspected that he didn’t understand what she meant by “shared property” and corrected him.

Ji: Not the actor!
Ahn: (realizing too late what she meant) I know, I know.
Ji: Then what is it? (daring him to tell her what he thought “gong yoo” meant.)
Ahn: I know. (Then, embarrassed, he walks away.)

Jaein sighs and hangs her head.

In my opinion, Jaein’s trying to “level up” their relationship WITHOUT actually going through the hassle of formally asking him to start dating each other. But Lee Ahn is too slow to pick up.

To me, if Jaein ONLY meant that his hands were joint/shared/communal property because she needed his hands to solve her problem, then she would have point-blank told him so to avoid any misunderstanding. She’s frank that way. She would have said, “Hey, doofus! I need your hands to solve my problem, remember? I’m invested in your hands, too, so don’t you dare make stupid bets on it.” 

Three, when she gave him the dictionary —

He thinks she’s insulting him, “Aren’t you looking down on me too much?” But to me, she’s leading him. She wants him to look up the word, “Shared” because he totally missed what she tried to say early.

Shared: One property owned by two or more individuals.

And Jaein’s proud of himself. “So I was right! I may be stupid but I know this. But why is she sharing my wrists and all?” And he’s all coy like a fanboy. “Aww… shucks.”

Fourth, when they were sneaking out of the office —

Ahn: Do you know how to fight?
Ji: You know that I don’t do anything without being the best, right? I graduated as top student in police school.

Ahn: You’re going to have to fight very well. If not, I might have to touch you to save you.
Ji: Sure. I’m not planning on blocking you out anymore anyway.

Ahn: What? (Facepalm! This is not the time to be asking her for an explanation, Lee Ahn! lol.) What do you mean? (This sounds like his question while waiting for the taxi.)

She doesn’t answer him. The Bad boss claps his hand to call their attention, “Come on, it’s great that you two are a thing, but could you focus on us for now?”

But when he catches her and drops her, she whines, “I said it’s fine!” if he touches her. And he says, “It’s habit.”

hahaha. Whoops!

The reasons why I like all these little “feelers” or mini-confessions from Jaein is the role reversal. Usually, it’s the guy who gives out the hints, and the girl is the one who’s confused. She doesn’t know whether or not she correctly heard and interpreted what the guy said.

In this episode, Jaein gives the hints, like a boss, and our Lee Ahn, is the befuddled one. He’s the one asking, “What do you mean?”

8. This director knows his stars.

I remember in Hwayugi I wrote about the Lyra constellation which is associated with Orpheus. There’s a sad story attached to Orpheus… and that should have warned me about the !@#$ ending of Hwayugi.

link: Hwayugi: The Lyra Constellation

Here, the constellation here is the Orion constellation. (Don’t kill me if I get this wrong. My husband and sons love to stargaze; I just tag along and wait for wishing stars. lol.)

It’s named after the Orion, a great hunter in Greek mythology. And we know that the mystery in this kdrama is the stalker. And now Kang SungMo is about to go hunting for this stalker who’s been threatening his loved ones.

The three bright vertical stars make up “Orion’s belt” also known as the Three Sisters. lol. Interesting right? Since the stabbed victims come in threes, and there were three women in suitcases, one in the apartment, and two in the river.

9. The rooftop kiss

I’ll have to write about this and a few other things I skipped tomorrow. I’m waiting for Episode 8 before commenting on them.

I hope you all enjoyed the show like I did.