If you’re Team Geek, this was a fun episode to watch.

If you’re Team “Good Boy,” the best part for you was probably the two seconds in the preview for Ep 14.

Team JP would be like:

Here are my highlights:

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1. InJae and Dalmi = Elsa and Anna of “Frozen”

I like that Dalmi saw a bit of her father in her unnie.

The sisters and their dad all envisioned technology as an agent of change. However, Dalmi tempered her father’s and sister’s zeal for innovation with Dosan’s father’s plea that the innovation shouldn’t disregard its marginalization of people and impact on the labor market.

I also commend InJae’s management style. JP could learn a thing or two from her.

For instance, she tapped the table to motion Dalmi to walk with her outside the room. Then, in private, she warned Dalmi.

Note the difference between InJae and JP:

a. Unlike JP, Injae contextualized the problem as a “we” problem, not just a “you” problem. It’s the problem of the whole company, not just Dalmi’s, should her project fail.

b. When Dalmi asked her if she was “pressuring” her, Injae replied, “No. I’m earnestly asking you not to make a mistake.” She was reminding Dalmi how important it was to steer the project to success, without insulting her intelligence or inexperience, as JP would have done.

Lastly, to those viewers who asked me what I thought of an InJae-JP pairing, I don’t think it’s rather too late in the drama for JP to transfer his affections from Dalmi to InJae. However, it’s possible that InJae declined to attend Chuseok at her Grandma’s house because she wanted to avoid JP who was spending it with her family.

lol.

I’ve to make a mental note of NoonGil. According to the narrator, “NoonGil, 2STO’s app for the visually impaired has been acquired by the world’s top private foundation. The CEO of K. Jonse deeply empathizes with the vision and objectives of NoonGil and has promised ongoing support and continual investment in its R&D.”

It wasn’t JP who found the investor. It was Dosan.

2. Dalmi’s Tarzan = Dosan sailing without a map

As I pointed out in another post, Dalmi was working on a self-driving car named Tarzan and Dosan was “sailing without a map.”

But who needed a map when Dosan was a human astrolabe?

Dosan: Both Seoul and San Francisco’s latitude is 37 degrees N. It’s almost the same. The difference in longitude is the reason why we’re 16 hours behind here, but it’s so peaceful here that it’s almost hard to believe that we share the same sky. Looking back, every day there felt like a war. I was wounded every day.

The title of Episode 13 is “Comfort Zone: A Place Where One Feels Safe and At Ease.”

Based on Dosan’s comment, it appeared as if San Francisco was his “comfort zone.” But as he would tell Dalmi later, it was a nice place and “nice” makes it boring for him. Although Seoul had felt like a combat zone where he injured every day, he missed the thrill.

In this sense, Seoul was his natural comfort zone. Despite the challenges and stress, he felt the most exhilarated when he dealt with them. Likewise with Chulsan and Youngsan. They enjoyed the thrill. So they decided, to a man, to return to Seoul.

Another mental note for the geography geeks out here. Although Seoul and San Francisco have the same latitude, winter is freezing in Seoul because of the cold dry air, called Siberian High, coming from the Asian continent. In contrast, San Francisco gets the warm moist air from the Pacific Ocean so it doesn’t snow in the city.  Dosan didn’t need to pack this snow jacket.

Chulsan: Dosan, our captain. How’s the sea looking today?
Dosan: Not a single cloud, and the sea is very calm today. (smiling)

He looked cool here.

3. Why Tarzan?

lol. I’m sure the significance of the name is not lost on the viewers.

I like how both of Dosan and Dalmi pretended not to be interested in each other’s affairs. When the guys asked Dosan if he was interested in seeing Dalmi’s promo video, he flatly declined, then quickly made his way aft. The guys assuming he was avoiding their prying questions but I thought he secluded himself to watch the video alone.

Meanwhile, Dalmi also declined looking at Chulsan’s vlog to catch a glimpse of Dosan. But that night, she was crying over Dosan’s video.

Obviously, they both hadn’t gotten over each other.

Aside from “Tarzan,” another sign that Dalmi hadn’t forgotten about Dosan was she used his “Money money money” video to demo the skill of their videographer.

Moreover, when their paths almost crossed in the lobby, her subconscious mind registered his presence. She doesn’t possess a second pair of eyes in the back of her head, but she “saw” him walking past her. That’s why she turned around chased after a person who looked like Dosan. When she caught up to him and realized her mistake, she scolded herself, “I must be losing my mind. Why look for a guy who’s in the US now?” This incident indicated that she still subconsciously looked for Dosan in the crowd.

But the most important sign that Dosan was still very much in her thoughts was the “hands.” According to JP’s assistant, Dalmi liked her “ideal man” to have big hands.

She used to have a list of requirements for her “ideal man.” Remember this?

She didn’t want a man who was rude. “He’s so rude. He booked those tickets without asking me first. Think of Dosan. He was so careful when he wrote to me for the first time.”

How about this? “He can’t communicate. Think of Dosan. He’s always on my side.”

And this one? “Grandma, I can’t see this guy anymore. Look at this. He says we’re a ‘batch made in haven.’ It’s ‘heaven,’ not ‘haven.’ What’s ‘batch made in haven?’ And ‘batch?’ Does he think I’m a muffin or something? Think of Dosan. His spelling and grammar were flawless even in elementary school, remember?”

Those were the qualities of her “ideal man.” She would say, “Think of Dosan!” then tout an admirable trait of Dosan.

But these qualities were based on a FAKE Dosan from the FAKE letters JP wrote. JP couldn’t even remember most of the details he’d written in them.

But a pair of big hands was a real physical attribute of a real person, Dosan. She would “Think of Dosan!” every time she looked for big hands in her suitors.

And that’s how we could tell that she hadn’t gotten over Dosan.

4. Grandma lost her vision already.

That’s why she couldn’t play Go-Stop with them, and couldn’t tell that JP was asleep on the couch and had a blanket on him.

(BTW, JP lost at Go-Stop. He made all the skewers as punishment.)

She was also staring in front of her while Dalmi was talking to her to her about Tarzan.

5. JP’s Comfort Zone = FRIEND ZONE, lol

In terms of physical space, Grandma’s couch was his comfort zone. He felt asleep there, didn’t he?

Of course, nobody here on this blog should be surprised to learn that after three years, he’s been friend zone. That’s his emotional comfort zone: the friend zone.

Friend Zone!

He didn’t even know, after all these years, that Dalmi didn’t like men with small hands. He had to hear it from his assistant.

His assistant was more informed about Dalmi than he was!

But what made me laugh was that JP thought he was a candidate because he believed his hands to be big. He didn’t know that for Dalmi, the size of hands was very specific.

Think of the hands as the equivalent of Cinderella’s glass slipper.

She wasn’t looking for just ANY pair of long hands. She was looking for that ONE pair of hands that held her hands.

Now, if Grandma’s couch is JP’s physical comfort zone, and Dalmi’s friend-zone is his emotional comfort zone, then proposing to Dalmi meant going OUT of his comfort zone.

That’s why he was rehearsing his proposal in the empty corridor of Sand Box.

He practiced saying, “’I thought it would look good on you.’ Then she’ll ask me what this means. ‘Nothing. I just like to collect shiny things.’ What?! Are you a crow or something? ‘Do you have to know what this means?’ No, that’s like picking a fight. ‘What does this mean? Let me think. Well…It has a meaning, of course. Please accept my heart. That’s what it means.’ Oooh. I almost made myself vomit. Gosh, forget it. What the heck am I doing now?”

But was anybody surprised that he was uncomfortable about proposing? I wasn’t. If you think about this, it was HIS idea to propose, but Yeongsil’s idea.

JP: Yeongsil, the weather.
Yeongsil: Here’s your fortune for today.
JP: Okay, here we go again.
Yeongsil: You are a faint-hearted batter.
JP: Nice one. It’s something different today. Did you have an update?

lol. Don’t tell me he’s been getting the same fortune??!! Remember this? “Today, the god of fate will send a gentle breeze into your peaceful life. You may run into someone you met briefly in the past at an unexpected place.”

Yeongsil: Afraid of being called out, you are unable to even swing your bat. But if you continue to hesitate, you will lose.
JP: Do you know something?
Yeongsil: So be brave and just swing the bat. You could be called out, but you also may hit a home run. Two outs in the bottom of the ninth, and a full count. It’s time you stepped up your game. A good ball is coming your way. Swing your bat with all your might.

Another mental note for non-baseball viewers:

“Full count” means the batter already has three balls and two strikes. This is a stressful situation for both batter and pitcher because the next pitch is critical. The pitcher must throw a pitch to get the batter out. But he must not throw a “ball” (a ball is outside the strike zone) because a ball would result in the batter walking to first base. On his part, the batter feels pressured to swing at any pitch that comes at him because he doesn’t want to get three strikes and be called “out.”

“Ninth” refers to the last inning (or “round”) of the game. Each inning is divided in two halves. The visiting team and the home team take turns at batting the ball. The visiting team go first; they go on “top,” then the home team go afterwards; they go at the “bottom.”

“Bottom of the ninth” means that the home team is playing the last inning. If the home team is tied or losing to the visiting team, then this is the last chance for the home team to win this game.

“Two outs” means that two batters have already been called “out.” Each team is allowed three outs per inning. So if another batter gets called out, the game is over for the team.

Idiomatically, “two outs in the bottom of the ninth” evokes the desperation of a person to succeed at doing something very important. It’s the home team’s last inning so it’s their last chance to win the game. The batter has to hit the ball and win the game for the team. If he strikes out, then it’s all over.

That’s why JP went to the jewelry store. He has one last move (or one last chance) before it’s game over.

But here’s one trivia many viewers might miss if they aren’t into baseball.

In baseball, the pitcher, not the hitter, is the most important position because he dictates the game. “Pitchers win championships” is the usual saying. The baseball guy in this story is Dosan. He has the signed ball from Park Chanho,

6. Dalmi’s Comfort Zone

Dalmi: She’d been sleeping a lot since closing her corn dog business so it must by psychological.
JP: She worked all her life, so maybe this change is making her feel lost.
Dalmi: Maybe I should open a shop for her.
JP: Would you let me do that for her?
Dalmi: (waving it off) No, why would you do that? I should do it for her.

This gesture said a lot. After three years, she still had a “do-not-cross” line between her and JP. He wasn’t allowed inside her comfort zone, and JP picked up on that.

JP: Do I still make you uncomfortable? I wish you wouldn’t feel like that around me anymore. I want to be the person that comes to mind when life gets tough.

His body language also said a lot. He avoided looking her in the eyes. She was gazing at him, but he didn’t return her gaze. I thought that was because he wasn’t ready to discover HER level of interest in HIM. He was – as Yeongsil said – “afraid of being called out” so he didn’t want to swing his bat.

Dalmi: (nodding then swallowing) Of course, I do think of you.
JP: I want to be the first person.

She stopped and stared at him with big eyes. She was surprised by his remark, but refrained from commenting.

Well….this was awkward moment

She grabbed another carrot to munch on to give herself have an excuse for her silence.

JP: (nagging) Gosh, stop eating. Don’t just eat carrots if you want to munch on something.
Dalmi: (ignoring him and nibbling)

Obviously, calling him up in times of trouble was beyond Dalmi’s comfort zone. She didn’t think of him when the hackers attacked her Tarzan project. The police was called right away.

But her first phone call was to Saha. Saha was herself surprised to see Dalmi’s call. Her comment “Is today a special day or something?” suggested that Dalmi rarely called her up.

But she was the first person Dalmi thought of calling in times of trouble because Saha had mentioned that she had worked on a ransomware case in the past.

Then, after calling Saha, Dalmi called up another IT security group.

It’s only after she’d called the IT group, did she see JP’s number as she was scrolling through her contact list. She then remembered him telling her to call him when she was in trouble. He wanted to be the “first person.”  But her finger hovered over the call button and she hesitated.

I thought this was interesting in light of her chase after Dosan. That time, she didn’t hesitate to run after a person who looked like Dosan on the off chance that he was indeed Dosan. She was desperate enough to call out his name.

But now, in her hour of need, she hesitated to call JP on the phone.

Do you get what I mean?

Not only that. When an unknown number buzzed her, she took the call. Had she really wanted to talk to JP and ask for his help, she would have ignored this unfamiliar number, and called up JP.

Dalmi: Hello? Seo Dalmi speaking. Are you Taeram Construction’s IT security manager?
Dosan: Dalmi. It’s me, Dosan. Where are you?

Dalmi began tearing up.

Dosan: Dalmi.
Dalmi: What?
Dosan: Are you alright?
Dalmi: (holding back tears) Yes, I’m fine. Where are you? This is a domestic number.
Dosan: I’ll come now.
Dalmi: I said I’m fine. Why would you come here?
Dosan: Saha told me everything. You’re at work, right? I can get there in 20 minutes so don’t worry. Just wait for me.
Dalmi: (swallowing tears) Okay.

Let me post their reaction side-by-side.

She didn’t respond because…

she was at a loss for words. Wasn’t she just running after his lookalike? Maybe this was a figment of her imagination again. lol.

So he said her name again, “Dalmi.”

And this time, she replied, “What?”

I like that. I like that he asked if she was okay because this is more personal and more caring than asking about her software problem.

She tried to hold back her tears.

And she lied.

To me, she must have been wondering if he was the guy she’d seen earlier at the lobby.

Here, I like that he simply said, “I’ll come now.” If he had been JP, I’m sure he would have blamed her for causing the ransomware or barked at her for speaking softly on the phone.

This was a night shot. The camera shots were all close-ups because the director wanted us to focus on Dalmi’s reaction to hearing Dosan’s voice on the phone.

But as soon as Dosan told her, “I’ll come now,” the camera zoomed out and gave us a view of this room. The bars on the windows gave the illusion that she was trapped in a prison and he was coming to get her out of there.

Then, one by one, the superheroes came.

This was Dalmi’s comfort zone: in the company of Samsan Tech.

But this went beyond her “comfort zone.”  He was Dalmi’s sanctuary.

7. Chulsan and Saha

This couple has to be part of my highlights.

I had to laugh when Chulsan ordered a glass of Chardonnay.

Was anybody surprised here that Saha showed up at the restaurant? She was stalking him on his vlogs so she knew how to time it.

Youngsan: What are you doing here?
Saha: I had drinks with my friends in the area.
Chulsan: My gosh. What a crazy coincidence.
Youngsan: I know. What’s the likelihood of something like this happening?
Chulsan: Very slim! Seoul is a huge city. We arrived in Korea and came here for a barbecue. And just as we were leaving…It’s 9:11 pm now. The chances of you passing by here right at 9:11 pm.
Youngsan: Winning the lottery would be easier than this.
Saha: All sorts of odd things can happen in life, you know.

lol. She’s changed! In the olden days, she would have snorted at these geeks for fixating on numbers and probabilities, instead of paying attention to her. But here, she waited for them to finish rambling.

I like how she put her hand through the crook of his arm and led him out of the room. Like the boss.

So that’s it. My highlights for this episode.

I didn’t mention this box

because

a. we didn’t get to see what was inside, and
b. it would probably be pivotal in tomorrow’s story.

But we knew what he was up to. This was the “scrunchie” moment, redux.