Once again, I’m impressed with the wit of the writer of this kdrama.

Even the titles are witty —

Episode 9 is “There are No Bad Zombies in This World.”
Episode 10 is “The Secret of Birth.”

1. The titles

On one hand, the titles can be interpreted literally. But they actually provide a tongue-in-cheek abstract of episodes.

Take for instance Episode 9. Zombie Detective really comes out as a noble guy in this episode. He can’t eat humans, so he plans to run away from home and leave humans behind. But before he totally disappears, his honor demands that he repays the dead Kim MooYoung because he “borrowed” his identity to discover his forgotten past.

Zombie Detective isn’t a bad guy. And since he’s the only known zombie in this world, you can literally say that “There are No Bad Zombies in This World.”

But towards the end of the episode, the title will come to mean something else: dog training. This episode is all about SunJi trying to train him to become human. In fact, when I googled this, I was shocked to see that there’s actually a TV show in South Korea called, “There are No Bad Dogs in the World.” The program is about changing the bad behaviors of dogs and getting their owners to interact better with their pets.

lol.

In order to cure him of his Zombie tendencies, Sunji comes up with this brilliant idea of consulting a renowned pet behavior therapist.

SJ: Animal behavior expert, Veterinarian Seol Chaehyeon.
Vet: You must be the guardian?
Zombie: (clueless) Uhh… yes.
Vet: This is the one with problematic behavior, right?
SJ: Recently, shall I say… that his appetite has increased. Aggression has gotten stronger, too. So there’s the possibility of biting humans as well.
Vet: Let’s see.

Does this puppy look like he’s ferocious?

Zombie realizes then that SunJi is consulting the Vet about him, not Hodu.

Vet: It’s a male.
SJ: (looking at Zombie) Yes, a male.
Zombie: (inwardly) Oddly, this is making me feel bad.
Vet: Aggression is never a problem solely of the dog. It’s a problem that arises in the relationship between the dog and the guardian. That’s why it’s really important to form a bond.

It’s funny but the Vet looks like a therapist giving advice to couples with a problematic relationship, like SunJi and Zombie.

SJ: A bond?
Vet: In order to form a bond, trust for each other is really important. Going on a walk together is a good way, too. During a walk, it’s possible to urinate and defecate as well. So, in the process of taking care of that, a bond can be formed.

And SunJi is happy because she appoints herself as the guardian (or pet-owner), and Zombie as her pet.

Wow! Doesn’t Zombie look good here? Love those shoulders!

As for Episode 10, “The Secret of Birth,” on the surface, it refers to conversation between Zombie and Sunji’s friend, Det. Cha DoHyun, about Kang Minho.

Cha: Kang Minho-ssi. By chance, do you know someone by the name of Kang Minho? It’s just aht I recently saw a man who looks exactly like you, someone named Kang Minho. Have you perhaps heard that name.
Zombie: I’m not sure.
Cha: (shows a pic) What do you think? Doesn’t he look exactly like you?
Zombie: He really does.
Cha: People might think he’s a twin or a doppelganger. Don’t you have a brother who’s been hidden or a birth secret?
Zombie: (laughs) I don’t have any.

That’s the literal interpretation of Episode 10’s title. Det. Cha pretends to be interested in Zombie’s birth secret when he knows very well that Zombie is none other than Kang Minho. However, he doesn’t have any evidence.

Fortunately, Det. Cha doesn’t know that Zombie’s real past is darker than any birth secret he’s ever heard.

Zombie, himself, is just unravelling the shocking secret of his origin. How he became a zombie and how Kim Moo Young was involved in his origins are his REAL birth secret.

He’s unaware that, as he’s searching for the truth about his genesis, Mr Noh the Vet is already using Zombie’s mutant cells to experiment on a dead rabbit and to regenerate it.

Thus, the secret of his birth as a zombie has resulted into an even bigger secret: the creation of another zombie. Zombie’s body holds the secret ingredient needed to revive a dead creature. Can you imagine how dangerous Zombie can be? The mad Mr Noh can reproduce more zombies with his mutant cells.

Hence, there’s a double triple meaning to the title, “The Secret of Birth.”

A. The secret (or the mystery) surrounding his transformation into a zombie
B. The secret experiment that Vet Noh was working on. With Zombie’s cells, more zombies can be created.
C. The secret of life and death. There’s no such thing as death, if an undead like Zombie can be returned to human again.

In Zombie’s own words, “Kim Mooyoung recognized me before he died. Being certain that I was related to the experiment, he handed me the office key that contained the research. If it’s this bastard (Mr. Noh) that turned me into this state, wouldn’t he know how I can return to human?”

2. The meaning of the opening sequence

Finally! We now understand opening scene with Zombie’s foot in chains.

He came out of a room, faced SunJi, rushed toward her, and bit her as she screamed. Then, a bloodied hand hit the window.

In Episode 9, we find that that this is all part of Sunji’s dog/zombie training program for Zombie.

The first step is Zombie’s toilet-training, much to his chagrin.

SJ: If you want to go to the bathroom, just tell me.
Zombie: You, really! How many times have I told you that I’m not an animal? Hodu, walking on all four, and me, walking upright, how are we the same? How dare you compare me to a dog!

He sees Hodu’s doggy toy thrown in the air and he instinctively moves to retrieve it. He pretends to be stretching.

Zombie: I’m stretching. Don’t think any weird thought.
SJ: (snortsw) Tell me if you want to go to the restroom.

The second step is listening to commands.

Zombie stares at a chicken on a place while he’s reminded in a voiceover that “Building patience is the most important thing. That has to be controlled in order not to bite humans.”

He grabs it when he can’t resist anymore. But SunJi’s watching him from their videochat. She disciplines him.

SJ: Wait. Wait! Wait. Wait.
Zombie: (grumbling) Did you just talk informally to me?
SJ: In a way, it’s a signal. The shorter and stronger the command is, the better it is.
Zombie: (grabs chicken again)
SJ: No. Wait.
Zombie: (drops the chicken) No. I’m not doing this. (sulky) I just won’t eat. I’m not eating.

Meanwhile, back in Sunji’s apartment, her Brother-in-law (BIL) is sneaking to steal a bankbook. Hearing Sunji’s commands, he mistakenly thinks he’s been caught by SunJi. He obeys her command in fear.

lol. Sunji doesn’t know that she’s training TWO dogs at the same time, Zombie and her BIL.  who guiltily obeyed her every command.

SJ: Wait. Sit! I said you can’t, didn’t I? Hand. Hand. Quickly, hand.

SJ: Hand.
Zombie: (standing up in protest) She keeps talking informally.
SJ: Hand.
Zombie: (sitting down)
SJ: Hand.

Sunji wants him to touch the screen with his hand, like a dog shaking hands.

Zombie: (rebelling) Did you think that I would do it?

And he turns him off.

He grumbles that he’s doing all sort of silly things on her command. Back in her room, SunJi is smiling because he’s doing all sort of silly things on her command.

The third step is learning about his appetite. For this step, he has to be chained.

Zombie: (complaining) Do you really have to go this far?
SJ: If you know your enemy and know yourself, you will be victorious a hundred times in a hundred battles. You have to know yourself to win yourself.

She quotes Sun Tsu’s “The Art of War.”

SJ: And you are curious, too, aren’t you? What happens when you lose your memory.
Zombie: (admits that he wants to know)
SJ: From now on, for exactly three days, everything will be recorded for 72 hours. Just in case, I filled the refrigerator with raw chicken as well.
Zombie: But how could you…?

Of course, I laughed when the spying detectives thought that Zombie had a bondage fetish, and that SunJi was part of it.

SJ discovers that he becomes a zombie in less than two days.

Here’s the opening scene in full color in Episode 9.

Note: There’s no bloody hand on the window. SunJi’s hand reaches for the pan instead and whacks Zombie on the head with it.

The fourth step is finding the right pan to hit him with.

SJ: Which one do you prefer? You may feel a bit of pain either way, but we may as well pick the one you want.

In other words, she’s kindly allowing him to choose his own method of concussion. He gets knocked out either by a frying pan or her shot put ball. lol. How ridiculous is that?

SJ: I think both will be pretty good.
Zombie: (bitterly) You’re having the time of your life right now. Go with this one (the ball). The frying pan makes me feel weird.

Of course, it should feel weird! In cartoons, the husband is often hit by the irate wife with a frying pan, so why should he be hit on the head like a guilty husband. Besides, as he says, he feels like a mole in that whack-a-mole arcade game.

I don’t know if this is a foreshadowing.

3. The slow romance

Although we only have two more episodes left, I don’t mind that SunJi and Zombie’s relationship hasn’t progressed to a kissing level. I prefer it this way.

When Zombie moves out of the detective agency, he leaves everything that belonged to the former Det. Kim MooYoung behind, including the money. He finds himself wandering in a meat market and everything there reminds him of SunJi.

He sees chicken,

and he remembers SunJi stocking up on chicken for him. That made him smile.

The bacon strips

remind him of tripe.

And the dinner Sunji treated him to.

Then, he remembered the birthday party when Sunji insisted that he grilled the meat to distract him from eating her family.

He can see the beef being sliced but instead of feeling ravenous, he remembers her.

And so he thinks, “hunger makes me think of all kinds of useless things.” lol. Hunger pangs should have made him drool over the chicken, the bacon strips, and the side of beef. But instead he blames his hunger pangs for thinking about Sunji.

And I find that cute. In kdramas, there’s always something that reminds the hero of the girl he’s left behind. It can be a romantic landscape, a kitschy item, or an old haunt. But here, raw meat reminds Zombie of Sunji.

He starves and loses consciousness. When he wakes up, he finds that he’s back at his agency with a chicken bone in his hand. He barely has time to settle in his office when people start dropping by.

Note: they’re all Sunji’s people.

First, it’s SunJi’s brother-in-law. He wants to consult Zombie about a script he’s working on. Then, it’s Sunji’s nephew. He wants to redeem his coupon to give Hodu a bath. Then, it’s SunJi’s bestie. She’s comes to offer him a box of his favorite tripe but, of course, the real entrée on the menu is herself; she’s offering herself. lol.

Zombie gets rid of all of them because he’s terrified of succumbing to his hunger pangs and eating them. Just as he’s about to leave, Sunji arrives.

Now, their confrontation is textbook makjang (or Korean soap opera). She accuses him of cutting ties with her and begs him to stay and he gives a noble and idiotic excuse.

SJ: You didn’t eat Oh Hyuncheol but when didn’t you tell the truth? Did you do that on purpose? Because you don’t want to work with me?
Zombie: Yes.
SJ: What?
Zombie: I did that on purpose because I don’t want to work with you.
SJ: So, are you running away again? Where are you going this time? The mountain is restricted due to development. Oh, are you going to the US or something?

That’s another trope. Broken-hearted people in kdramas always end up going to the US to study or something.

SJ: (continuing) Right. They make lots of zombie movies. So I guess you’re right to live will be protected. But you know what? Guns are allowed in the US. They’ll kill you as soon as they find you.
Zombie: Stop being nosy. If you stay with me, you’ll be in danger.
SJ: So? Are you seriously leaving like this?
Zombie: It’s better for both of us.

Afterwards, Zombie and Sunji clear up the air.

Zombie: I didn’t eat Oh Hyuncheol. But it’s true that I almost ate him. That night I felt an appetite from him. That’s the reason I can’t be human.
SJ: Is that true?
Zombie: I’m afraid of what’s going to happen. I feel like I’m turning into a real zombie. You need to help me. I want to live as a human like you. I don’t want to live as a zombie who feels an appetite from a human. So you need to help me.

Here, they enter a new stage in their relationship. Sunji asks her BIL how to train a zombie. She thinks the zombie’s aggression and appetite can be controlled, but BIL says that, although these can be controlled, it isn’t possible for zombies to understand humans. BIL points out that if anything goes wrong, the zombie will eat the human.

Sunji has the last word, however. She defends Zombie saying, “It’s not that zombies don’t understand what humans say. It’s that humans don’t try to listen to zombies.” She’s defending her man…err, her Zombie.

I don’t expect a full-blown romance because Zombie is who he is. In fact, in Episode 10, during that popcorn scene, he realizes that he’s accidentally wrapped his arm around her and moves his hand away.

He’s aware of his Zombie condition so he’s not going to entertain any skinship right now. Perhaps in the next season?

4. Season 2?

Overall, I like the story development of this kdrama. It’s orderly and logical. We first see Zombie training to be human in order to survive among human. Then SunJi discovers his secret but she encourages him to live without fear among humans. She promises to help him find his family if he stays. But now that he’s regained his memory, he finds out that he’s all alone. He needs to fight off his zombie aggression and appetite that were awakened by his killer.

SJ: Boss, I will ask you just one more question. Did you mean it when you said you want to become a human?
Zombie: Yeah.
SJ: Then, let’s keep running this detective agency. Find a way to become a human and live like a human. One who needs to be punished, one who needs help, and one who lost his life. It’s the work of this detective agency to help this kind of people, isn’t it?

I like this. Sunji has been the driving force in this kdrama, and now she’s set down not only Zombie’s mission in life but also their detective agency’s mission statement.

Zombie’s mission:

The agency’s mission:

SJ: Until now, of all the peop- Of all the living beings I’ve seen, you’re the most worthy of being called a human.

High praise indeed coming from our idealistic SunJi.

Zombie: (stands up)
SJ: The way I see, staying here at this detective agency is the safest for you and other humans as well. Don’t you agree?

With two more episodes to go, I think the show will wrap up well. However, if the producers, casts and crew decide to go for another season, I think the groundwork has been laid. We know that the Vet is guilty, but his experiment could have had financial backing from a bigger enterprise, and Zombie might turn out to be the precursor of a Zombie apocalypse. Besides, there’s still the slow romance between Zombie and SunJi to explore.

Kudos to the wonderful writer, director, and actors for such a rip-roaringly fun kdrama.