Spoilers abound, obviously.

1. When SaEon (SE) wakes up in the hospital, he’s informed right away that:

a. he’s brought to a Dr. Kim’s hospital. I’m assuming he’s in a private hospital and the doctor can be trusted.

b. his team wasn’t seriously injured. Yeahhhh, right. After the fiery explosion?! I expected the arms of the pizza-carrier to have been blown off.

He immediately checks on the whereabouts of HeeJoo (HJ) and reads the text from her bodyguard that she was at home. He’s relieved.

Noteworthy: Unlike the previous bodyguards, the new hire keeps in the background. She must have been on HJ’s tail when HJ went to her lunch date with her sunbae, when HJ was trapped in the garage, and when HJ rushed to her father’s assisted living facility (ALF). I’m assuming that it’s the bodyguard who texts SE after the memorial rites that he’s attending, that HJ is at the ALF. That’s how SE knows where to find her at the ending scene. This bodyguard is the unheralded hero of this episode. The bodyguard and also SE’s trusted sidekick, DoJae.

SE wants to go after the bomber, though DoJae wants him to lie low to avoid reporters. SE refuses to play into the hands of his would-be killer. He thinks the killer is simultaneously challenging him and cornering him so he can’t retaliate. Hence, SE is adamant on payback. “But I have to respond. There are plenty of ways to screw hi over without revealing myself.”

Noteworthy: At this point, he hasn’t figured out yet that TWO separate forces are in play. On one hand, there’s the killer who has an axe to grind. He assumes that HJ’s wife is his weakness, so he abducts her.

But on the other hand, there’s HJ who’s needling and taunting SE so she can get him to divorce her. Remember the prenuptial contract: SHE can’t initiate divorce proceedings; no divorce on election year; no disclosure of her identity as his wife; penalty of 2B won for breach of contract.

But while HJ is using the situation to force SE to divorce her, it’s still unclear why the original killer is after SE in the first place. We know that HJ snapped when she heard SE’s dismissive response to the killer. He said, “Call me when there’s a corpse.” That was her trigger. But we don’t know what motive(s) the killer has for attempting to ruin SE’s life, and what triggered him to set the ball rolling on that very night when SE had a (delayed) televised news conference about the hostage takers demanding a ransom.

Note: I sense that the timing is significant in the plot, but I don’t get why.

Remember: SE had the press announcement early in the day that the government would not negotiate with the terrorists, but he asked the Korean press specifically not to release reports until a later specified time (i.e., a news embargo). His mother, interestingly enough, is the “country’s first negotiation expert” and “former criminal psychologist.” I would have expected her to be somehow involved in the backroom negotiations for the release of the hostages, while the son SE was publicly declaring the government’s strong “Absolutely no negotiations!” stance. The fact that he could deliver the message so convincingly despite knowing it was a bald-faced lie impresses me. What’s even scarier is that everyone in the newsroom, except HJ, all fell for his fake news because they were fangirling/fanboying him.

Newsguy 1: Good vocalization and a great voice. What was he like as a news anchor?
Newsguy 2: The same as he is now. He ranked first in preference, trust, and ratings.

Lol. In comparison, the current White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, is an abject failure. She ranks low in preference, trust, and ratings. Oh well….

2. When SE arrives home, his first move isn’t to reassure her that he’s fine. Instead, he wants to check whether she’s having an affair. Lol. He wants to see her mole on her thigh. This confirms our suspicion that their three-year marriage is unconsummated.

It’s also fair to assume that he’s loved her in secret. The news reporter is correct in his observation.

Reporter friend: Was it an affair?
SE: I don’t know.
Reporter friend: It’s definitely an affair. He’d know if he checked his wife.
SE: He didn’t.
Reporter friend: Why not? To try and get evidence?
SE: He might not want to.
Reporter friend: Do what?
SE: To find out for himself.
Reporter friend: Then he’s a pervert.
SE: (chokes on water)
Reporter friend: Normal people would’ve lost it and dug right in for the truth. “Who are you sleeping with?” But he can’t even check for himself. What do you think?
SE: (not answering)
Reporter friend: It’s true love.

By “pervert,” I think the reporter isn’t alluding to sexual depravity. He meant that this hypothetical friend of SE has an abnormal or warped sense of marriage and fidelity. This hypothetical friend of SE is desperate to stay married to his wife that he’s willing to overlook his wife’s adultery and become a cuckold. His acceptance (or tolerance) of infidelity is a sign of true love.

And there are plenty of signs in this episode that SE cares for her. Like, when –

a. he picks up the broken pieces of glass from the floor and chides her for being clumsy. He says, “How could you be so careless? You earn a living with your hands.” Meaning, since she’s a sign language interpreter, she should be careful not to cut her fingers.

b. he shows up to interrupt HJ’s lunch date with her sunbae and proceeds to interrogate the poor guy.

c. he rejects the killer’s demand (that is, HJ herself, lol) to divorce her. He says, “listen carefully, 406. I will never give you what you want. You’re a crazy man resorting to kidnapping, extortion and even bomb threats now. Do you think I’d give HeeJoo to you? I have no intention of giving her up.” This implies that he’ll only give her up to someone who’s law-abiding and honorable because he cares for her wellbeing.

This is consistent with his action in Episode 2. He had asked his then-fiancee if HJ was still going to marry a rich chaebol who was known to be a piece of trash. When he found out that HJ was being married off (or sold off for influence), he demanded that HJ be the replacement for the older sister.

d. he clumsily asks to be forgiven for the callous words he spoke on the night she was abducted. At first, it appears as if he wants to torment HJ by encroaching on HJ’s space and sleeping on her bed. But his reason becomes clear.

HJ: (turning her back on him)
SE: Don’t turn your back. It’s rude to the person beside you.
HJ: (turns around again)
SE: He knew where my office was, so the house probably isn’t safe either. But for tonight, sleep without worrying. And whatever happened the day you were kidnapped, just think of it as a bad dream. (pausing) What you heard then, too.
HJ: (silently recalling how he said that he didn’t want to be bothered until her corpse showed up)
SE: (continuing) Forget it all. Don’t read too much into it.

I like to think that he first delivers a logical reason for his presence in her bed (i.e., for her safety) in order to allay her suspicions that he wants physical intimacy with her. But his real reason for being there is to apologize for his words. Of course, he doesn’t want her dead, but at the time, he believed it was a crank call, and his gut response was identical to the government stance on terrorists: no negotiation.

e. he goes on a night errand to buy HJ beer and ice cream. This is consistent, too, with his cooking her breakfast in the previous episode.

3. Speaking of perverts, SE’s father acts like one when he’s giving first aid to HJ’s mother in front of her husband. If he’s trying to come on to the wife of his greatest political ally, then he must be an incorrigible womanizer. While it’s good for him that the Hong family has kept his scandals out of the news, he’s dumb enough not to fear the power the Hong has over him. With that much dirt on him, he’s virtually a puppet, and HJ’s stepfather is his puppeteer and overlord.

Noteworthy: HJ’s stepfather doesn’t think much of SE’s father. He has the audacity to insult SE’s father to his face. He’s more impressed with his son-in-law.

HJ’s stepfather: But don’t you actually keep the most talented one close at hand? My son-in-law. Spokesman Paik. I wonder how you will use him after you keep him hidden away. I’m quite curious.
SE’s dad: (misses his shot)
HJ’s stepfather: This reminds me of when I used to go hunting with Chairman Paik. He possessed remarkable instinctive abilities.
SE’s dad: I could never match my father’s athletic abilities. (chuckling)

He missed the point, like he missed his shot. HJ’s stepfather was obviously NOT talking about athletic abilities but political savvy.

HJ’s stepfather: (still talking about Chairman Paik) He was decisive and made quick judgments. It seems SaEon inherited those qualities.
SE’s dad: (unresponsive)

I wouldn’t be surprised if HJ’s stepfather is somehow involved in the abduction plot.

Interesting detail: the tiger on the gunstock of HJ’s stepfather’s rifle (timestamp: 11:56)
Also another interesting detail: the dragon on the signet ring of the man in the portrait (timestamp: 18:41)

4. SE has known HJ for 20 years??!!

I’ll have to roll my eyes here.

5. It was HJ’s mother who told her to pretend to be mute.

HJ’s mother: Be quiet. Don’t make a sound. His biological daughter’s deaf, and his only son is dead. But you’re unscathed, and if you upset the chairman, we’ll get kicked out! Yes, HeeJoo. Don’t say a word. HeeJoo, you’re so shocked that you can’t speak, okay?
HJ: Mom, that hurts!
HJ’s mother: Shut your mouth! You can’t sacrifice your voice? Not every life holds the same value, HeeJoo. We…We can only stay if the chairman feels sorry for us. Do you understand?
HJ: How long do I have to not speak?
HJ’s mother: Until you turn into bubbles. You’re the Little Mermaid now.

Comments:

1. That’s why in the last scene, HJ sits by the river banks. To me, her pose reminds me of the that little bronze statue of the Little Mermaid in Copenhagen, Denmark. The sculpture depicts the moment when the Little Mermaid is turning into a human. Similarly, in this episode, this is the moment when HJ turns into SE’s wife. She’s no longer an unknown in his life; he’s finally declaring and acknowledging him as “his” person.

2. I’m inferring that HJ and the son were both in accident. While the son died, HJ survived.

3. It wouldn’t be a shocker if the son was the masked kid in the big mansion near the orphanage.

That’s it for now. Our Thanksgiving guests are awake.