Slowly but surely I am catching up with "The Joseon Gunman". Political intrigues are heating up and everyone is shifting alliances trying to get one up in this horrible battle over power and enlightenment. Who will win? And who is going to end up being the visionary that will shape the face of Korean politics. If nothing else it is a topic which is more engaging than how many times Soo In going to be either crying or need saving this week.
Episode 13
Do you know where your daughter is? I am pretty sure that Soo In's parents would have to answer this question in the negative. Soo In sure seems to have a lot of free time to roam about with single men. And she is still oh so boring, so at least for now we are going to skip the reunion and the mediocre kiss to go on to more important plot points.
Is it just me, or does Yoon Kang seem to constantly forget that his nemesis (Merchant Choi) has a bunch of gun toting minions at his disposal. This is the 2nd time that he acts like he is facing only one person and is caught in a trap by a 2nd (or more) gunman taking him out. And why is there not more outside interest about all the gunshots going on in the merchants house. It is not like that is a common sound in that time period, or that it can be explained away as a car backfiring. I think if i was a policeman looking for random gunman, I would follow the sound of guns.
Yoon Kang manages to fight his way to victory and is finally able to confront his fathers killer. However before he kills him Hye Won rushes between her father and Yoon Kang's gun. Pleading for her fathers life, Hye Won tells Yoon Kang that her father will go confess to the police if he spares his life. Yoon Kang being the softy he is (and might I add, extremely naive about politics) agrees and hands Merchant Choi off to the police. But judging from the knowing looks being thrown right and left as he is brought in, our 2nd favorite gunman will not be incarcerated for long.
Sure enough he is taken from police custody and an arrest warrant is sent out for Park Yoon Kang. Rolling my eyes at how totally lacking in street smarts our heroes/heroines are in thinking that everything was over. Luckily Yoon Kang is able to think fast once he is incarcerated and devises a plan to get confessions from the lackeys that framed his father. But in true idealistic annoying hero fashion he again underestimates his opponents. Yada....yada....yada.... and in the end he is the one who is accused of high treason and sentenced to a speedy beheading.
It always amazes me when they just expect the bad guys to admit their guilt, or even more unbelievable, that Hye Won would willingly condemn her father to death. The looks of disbelief she received made me chuckle, because you were a twit if you thought she would turn on her dad for a man she is not even married to.
Episode 14
We sure get a lot of jail cell hand holding scenes between this OTP (One True Pairing). They can't seem to stay out of trouble and out of prison. I am sure I should feel more emotions when watching them, but it was just not meant to be. As a couple they continue to bore me and the Lee Joon Gi costar curse continues. Why does such a sexy leading man have such a hard time really connecting in with his costars? It is a kdrama mystery.
Super hot sword wielding mystery assassins are always a good addition when you need some excitement added into a plot. While being taken to some mystery location to be beheaded (why was he being moved in the open roads anyway?) the guards are attacked by a band of unknown swordsmen dressed all in black. I was always curious, why would you dress all in black during the middle of the day? Isn't it slightly conspicuous? I can understand the blending benefits of the clothing during nighttime, but during the day you just stick out as a band of bad guys or men on a revenge/secret mission. Those are pretty much the only two options within a Saguek.
This time the dark clothed saviors were the good guys, led by the head guardsman and the king. YAY! I like the king, even though he seems to be very ineffective in getting anything accomplished against his political foes. He requests that Yoon Kang help him in stopping the people that framed his father and I begin to think that an alliance is in the making. That is, until Yoon Kang throws it back into their faces asking them how he can trust them when he is the one sentenced to death and the man who murdered his father is let free with his pride intact. Yoon Kang tells them to kill him now because otherwise he will simply go and kill the guilty party ASAP. The king lets him leave with the words that "he will continue to try and avenge Yoon Kang's father, and that if Yoon Kang changes his mind, come find him at any time". YAY, the alliance is probably back on once Yoon Kang learns some more life lessons! Hopefully they will come quickly since I need my political intrigue fix.
A mysterious (that seems to be my word of the day in describing this episode) man arrives in Joseon asking for Hanjo/Yoon Kang. When he is told by spunky maid that he has dies, it is interesting that he replies that Yoon Kang is not the type of person to perish so easily and if he shows up to tell him that his friend from Japan has arrived (loving this character already). Catching sight of Yoon Kang sneaking back into his room, his friend (still nameless) admonishes him on his revenge plans that will only lead to more blood shed and more people looking for revenge. Zen teacher then states that for things to change, the world must change. We need to look at the big picture and not at our anger. Yoon Kang is not any more receptive now than when being told similar things by the king. He is done with forgiveness and is going to try doing things a different way.
Hye Won is just having a really really crappy week. First she must betray the man she has feelings for to save her father (completely understandable), then when she finds out he is still alive and tries to apologize, Yoon Kang brutally shuts her down and even the happy moments she thought she had had with him are crushed. Then finally she finishes out her trifecta of suckage by upsetting the merchant company and losing all of her stock. Poor Hye Won is done and the horrible events lead her to attempt to take her own life by wading into the river. Her father ( I still love him even though he is a murderer) rushes out of his house despite the threat of Yoon Kang and frantically looks for his daughter. Merchant Choi finds Hye Won just as her head goes under and is able to fish her out of the river. Desperately yelling at her to live and go on, Merchant Choi is able to save her and gives her a fatherly lecture on how life will never be fair to them, but they must go on and give up on things like pride and love. It is fascinating how I am responding to this pairs trials more than the majority of the other characters in the drama. I actually care what happens to them and want them to come forth and step on all those nobleman who treat them so poorly. I really do enjoy Yoon Kang's character, but when it comes to who I really want to watch, it is definitely the Choi's.
However, it looks like Merchant Choi's time might be up. He is chased by Yoon Kang and sent to a familiar cliff (I am pretty sure it is the only cliff in all of Korea where a person can die). Merchant Choi begs for his life (yet again), but this time Yoon Kang will not be swayed. He shoots Merchant Choi first in the leg for his father, in his left arm for his sister, and then finally in his chest for himself. Merchant Choi lifts his arm as he falls backward off the cliff into the river below. Well that was unexpected. I was really enjoying the two men's skirmishes and now all I am left with is the boring romance. Of course the whole falling to one's death off a cliff into a river usually indicates that the person is not dead yet so there is a good chance we will see Merchant Choi resurrected soon. If nothing else this might inspire Hye Won to find her evil side (a side that has been surprisingly absent so far) and do a little bit of revenge of her own.
This week we played more of the "I know who you are, and I know that you know I know" game. We of course still got some misleading tricks thrown in to create doubt, since Yoon Kang is toying with his prey, but for the most part the secret is out. I feel that we have been going in circles the last few episodes, but at least we get to watch Lee Joon Gi do his trademarked, I just outwitted you, smirk which is always a pleasure. But what I am really waiting for is seeing Yoon Kang enter into the political arena which was the real killer of his father. We are slowly (very very slowly) getting there, but I am starting to get impatient for the payoff.
The big bad conservative faction is laying low as the fallout from the death of one of their members is felt. Merchant Choi is reprimanded for moving his gunman without direct permission from the creepy Noble Ahjussi. He is told that he is nothing but a "hunting dog" who follows commands and does not think for himself. Merchant Choi is obviously pissed off but backs off, although I notice that he doesn't mention his concerns about Yoon Kang's identity. Obviously this "hunting dog" has ideas of his own that do not include being under the Noble Ahjussi's thumb forever. We also learn that not only was Hye Won a former slave (until this week I was under the impression that maybe she was an adoptive daughter of some sort, or a illegitimate child), but her father also was a slave until he was raised up by creepy ahjussi to become his hidden mercenary. A lot of the threat against them, and the reason he is following the conservative party's orders, is due to the fact that he could be dragged down (along with his daughter) back to the rank of a slave. It is an interesting dynamic which makes the whole situation much more interesting. Not to mention the writers have really done a good job of not making me detest the Choi's. They are boxed in by outside forces, just like Yoon Kang. It is tragic that Merchant Choi was the actual killer of Yoon Kang's father, or else I would be thrilled to see these two team up and kick some creepy nobleman's butt.
Soo In finally was able to really shine this week. All I can say is "THANK GOODNESS!" and "It is about time." I was really starting to worry that they were going to keep her in the cute true
love bubble that held her personality in check. The added depth and strength to Soo In's character is greatly appreciated.
Being the daughter of a politician and the true love of a traitor can really
suck sometimes. Especially if different factions want to use your
identity to further their political agenda. Just as Soo In finally confirms Yoon Kang's identity, she is arrested for the production of gunpowder which was used in last weeks murder. Realizing that Yoon Kang must be the gunman, Soo In refuses to say anything in order to protect him. It probably would not have gone very far but Kim Byung-Je (hmmm need to think of a nickname for him. He is usually the creepy nobleman ahjussi in Sageuks, but has been supplanted by an even more annoying creepy voiced character. Maybe Political Ahjussi?) finds out that she is the daughter of his political rival and decides that this is the leverage he needed to destroy him. He actually takes great pleasure in torturing her (Kudos on the director for once actually making it look like the girl was being tortured. Usually I have noticed that directors tend to sprinkle some pink kool-aid on the white dress, make the girls grunt a bit, and it ends up having them look more constipated than in pain) and arrests her father on grounds of a conspiracy against the opposing political party. Then takes turn torturing them in front of each other until they "confess" to their supposed crimes.
If Soo in had not already figured out Yoon Kang's identity, I think that his reaction to her incarceration would have been a huge giveaway. To say he loses it is an understatement, as he fights policeman, officials, and pretty much anyone he can, trying to take responsibility for the gunpowder. To put it in perspective you have to realize that Yoon Kang is pretending to be a Japanese citizen (a country that is only grudgingly accepted in a commerce only capacity). If Yoon Kang, as Hanjo, was found guilty of a crime he would immediately be sentenced to death. Yet he was willing to chance that outcome to save Soo In from suffering on his behalf. Unfortunately for our wannabe hero, political ahjussi was determined to use Soo In as leverage so his claims of guilt were immediately ignored. It is only due to the actions of Kim Ho-Kyung (our vanilla second leading male) stepping up and going toe to toe with his father, that Yoon Kang is able to save Soo In and her father.
I find it fascinating how the writers return again and again to the theme of children (our 4 leads) being shaped and molded by their father's actions. Whether it is for the best, like in the case of Yoon Kang and his father, or in rebellion like Ho Kyung and Political Ahjussi, all of the younger cast are moved through the fated lines that were created before they were old enough to choose their own destinies. There is no better way of showing this than between Ho Kyung and his father. Not only are they on opposite sides of the ideological debate, but morally neither is able to understand the other. Political Ahjussi sees nothing wrong in framing Soo In's father (and Soo In is thrown in as collateral damage) and looks at the world through jaded eyes. Ho Kyung on the other hand is young and filled with ideals of the new era and refuses to compromise those ideals. When he finds out that his father is framing Soo In and his mentor, he goes over his father's head and informs the king. When the king finds out what is going on, and that there is a witness (Yoon Kang) who provided an alibi for Soo In, he reigns down kingly hellfire on Political Ahjussi. Not only does the king openly berates him, but he frees Soo In and her father, and orders Political Ahjussi to be imprisoned for falsely trying to get rid of his political rivals. This was obviously not what Ho Kyung had in mind and he is obviously upset to see his father's fall from power. It will be interesting to see if Ho Kyung continues on his path, or if filial duty will eventually chip away at his will.
With the conclusion of this episode we finally see all the pieces begin to come together for Yoon Kang's move towards justice for his father. He is now tentatively on the radar of not only the king, but of the political bad guys. He also will have a new goal of keeping Soo In's father safe from the same factions that killed his own father which will provide some forward movement plot wise. And while we still have no open confession between our two lovebirds, it is pretty obvious that each of them realizes that the secret is out of the bag and is just being kept silent because of some idea that by not saying anything out loud they will be protecting the other. It will be interesting how long this vow of silence will last. If i had to make a prediction, I would guess that it is not going to be long since we are due some uber romantic gazing at the least and more then likely Soo In will not be able to resist in helping Yoon Kang with his quest of vengeance.
Random Thoughts: Is anyone else amused that the conservatives enforce their anti-gun and anti-army stand point by a secret militia of gunman. A little bit of a hypocritical moment there.
I am really starting to enjoy Yoon Kang's cooky maid. The girl has a thing for the bad boys and accidentally getting to the bottom of the households secrets (even if she is not aware she came across them).
We spent this week mentally traveling in circles as everyone tried to figure out if Hanjo really is Yoon Kang, with varying degrees of success. And while I thoroughly enjoyed this layer of the drama I am really starting to anticipate Yoon Kang working his way up the levels of liars to the powerful men that really framed his father.
Is it upsetting anyone else how stupid all of the people in Yoon
Kang's life seem to be. They don't think anything of screeching his
name willy nilly even though he is wanted for treason. WTH little sis?
Have some common sense and realize that he is ignoring you for a reason
and maybe you should not go crying that he is your brother for every
psycho ahjussi to hear. Your brother is not giving you negative head
shakes and slapping you just for the fun of it.
Have a bit of 2nd lead regret. Hye-Won is such a great character and I sometimes find myself wishing she was the lead. It is not that I don't like Soo In, but some times I find her lack of common sense and life skills annoying. I just wish that Yoon Kang was in love with someone who would be an actual asset in his quest for the truth, rather than a cute but bumbling girl who hurts his situation more often than helps it. I truly hope to see Jeon Hye Bin have larger roles in future projects since she is doing such a great job.
The same can't really be said about the 2nd male lead. Kim Ho-Kyung
is just so plain vanilla in a drama full of colorful and dynamic characters. I can see how the writers initially set up his character to be interesting and dynamic but somewhere he has been whitewashed in the execution. He is the illegitimate son of the 2nd in command of the traditionalist party. He is pretty much giving his father the bird as he becomes one of the leaders of the progressive movements. Ho Kyung should be that perfect mix of defiant son/bad boy that we viewers love to love. But instead Soo In's maid leaves more of an impression on my mind (wow she is annoying) than Ho Kyung does. I am crossing my fingers that we get more character development for him in the 2nd half of the drama since I know that the actor is better than this. He was one of the few things I enjoyed about King's Family, but is just falling to the wayside in this drama.
I find the Choi's family and their political dynamic fascinating. Yes, Choi Won Shin is on the side of the conflict that we consider the "bad guys". He is a killer for hire and trains men as highly efficient mercenaries yet we see that he does have a heart when it comes to his daughter Hye-Won. A daughter who was a slave and saved by Won Shin and elevated to her current position. It is obvious that she is his weak spot and might be his downfall in the future. It is very enjoyable that Won Shin is a perfect nemesis for Yoon Kang. Both men are surviving the best that they can and deathly capable in combat as well as fighting with their wits. They are so evenly matched that you never know who is ahead in the game they are playing and that keeps the story interesting and moving forward.
We end episode 8 with a smoke filled bang as Yoon Kang successfully saves his sister just as Yeon Ha is about to be touched by the pervy minister of justice. Yoon Kang utilizes Soo In's ability to create a smoke bomb and uses it as a distraction to sneak in and save his sister. Unfortunately he is forced to murder the scuzzy minister in the process since he was about to slice Yeon Ha with a sword for attacking him as he was attacking her. Yoon Kang then takes that moment, a moment which would be better spent running away before the smoke clears, to have a touching reunion scene with his sister. Which again would be so much more touching if it was not right as one of the gunman get his scope set on the siblings. Luckily the bad guy misses and we get to see Lee Joon Ki do that awesome gun cocking spinney move he does. I am taking a wild guess that Yoon Kang escapes to fight another day.
-Random Thoughts-
Was surprised at the flashback where Yoon Kang was having a rough
time in Japan. For some reason I had just assumed that he was taken in
and raised up from the moment he was fished from the sea.
I am really enjoying the king and the political aspects of this drama. My only complaint is that we get too little politics (sorry I am a total junky for historical/political maneuverings) and too much creepy old ahjussi ringing his hands and plotting in his sinister whiny voice.
His secret identity is kind of a poorly kept secret. Everyone knows (except for our two leading ladies) and is acting accordingly with that knowledge. Evil merchant Choi is out to expose him while still keeping his trade agreement with the Japanese, bestie Jung Hoon is suddenly taking an interest in his job and helping Yoon Kang with all his schemes, and sister is just being dragged all about with a constant upset look on her face and no deeper thoughts. (I am kind of remembering why I was not fan of that child actress. Definitely has the one upset look down pat and does not deviate). It will be interesting to see how he gets out of being tried for treason when his identity is so well know. If I had a wish I would love to see him hook up politically with the king to make change happen.
I am still playing catch up due to my falling behind during my family vacation. And since I don't want to continue to be weeks behind in my recaps, I am doing a week where I combine the two episodes and just do a very light and breezy review. Sorry that it is not as in depth as usual, I hope you will bear with me. I decided that instead of doing a boring play by play, instead I will share my top 5 favorite moments/aspects of the episodes and be all ready and refreshed for this weeks recaps, written in my usual style.
#5 John Wayne Style Shootout.
My parents raised me on American westerns growing up so I am well versed in shootouts and showdowns. So color me surprised to see a western style gunfight between Yoon Kang and one of the secret gunman. It is reminiscent of my favorite John Wayne moment (see clip below) and I love that they are doing the whole riding straight at each other, shooting willy nilly. This drama continues to deliver amazing action sequences over and over that are unique and visually stimulating.
John Wayne Shootout Clip
#4 Playing Mind Games
I love that Yoon Kang is not cautious with Choi Won Shin (known to us as the #1 assassin gunman). In his effort to find out who framed and killed his father, Yoon Kang jumps head first into the vipers nest searching for suspects. Pulling the lose threads of the frame job, Yoon Kang hopes to find clues on who the main leader is. While searching for his father's murderer behind the scenes, Yoon Kang maintains his facade of Hasegawa Hanjo (right hand man of a Japanese business company) in front of the world. Little does he know that the enemy is the same for both of his personas. I can't wait for information to start coming forth and seeing his revenge get kicked into double time.
#3 Stealing 2nd Lead's Heart
I have been pretty vocal over my enjoyment of the 2nd female lead, Choi Hye Won, who has really been holding her own as the merchant gunman's daughter. She is tough, knows how to control men through strength and not by using just her looks, and is equal to any man. But even the strongest female is not immune to the beauty of Yoon Kang. Hye Won is being kidnapped by a rival company when Yoon Kang beats the crap out of them all single handed. I can completely understand how her head could be turned with such a manly display of awesomeness.
#2 Revenge Over Love
I am not a 100% convinced that Yoon Kang needed to keep Soo In in the dark about his return and revenge plans. Would her reaction have been any worse for his plans, than her constant attempts to prove who he really is? For whatever the reason, Yoon Kang decides to push his love away into a small corner of his heart and chooses to focus solely on revenge. But Soo In is not to be ignored and is constantly following Yoon Kang which provides a lot of enjoyable scenes between our OTP. And when it comes down to it, Lee Joon Gi's strengths are his angsty gazes and smirks. Which we saw in full force throught these two episodes.
#1 So Many Wardrobe Changes
It is rare that we see more than one or two different outfits in a Sageuk, however we are given a feast of styles for Yoon Kang's character. I am sure we could post hundreds of positive descriptive words for his various looks, but a picture is worth a thousand words, so enjoy this montage dedicated to Yoon Kang!
I am jumping with excitement for the next episode! How is Yoon Kang going to escape from getting caught not only by Soo In, but also our big bad merchant? Is he going to kick up his revenge plan a notch? Are there going to be more outfit changes? We should find out the answer to all these questions on Wednesday, and I hopefully will be back on my regular kdrama schedule so look forward to my recaps returning to my regular formant. Kmuse
Hey all! Kmuse here for yet another minicap of "The Joseon Gunman" episode 4. Since I am currently in the middle of vacation and traveling these mini recaps are my way of still getting to stay on schedule while juggling the added stress of long car rides, in laws, and sketchy wifi. So thanks for your support on staying with our blog until I am back at full recapping power.
-My Random Thoughts-
Lee Joon Gi is ALWAYS sexy if he has a weapon in his hands.
I know, I know, he is always sexy no matter what (I swear I could her my friend Debbie yelling that at me as I wrote the above sentence). But there is just something extra sexy about him holding a sword, knife, bow and arrows, and now a gun that adds that extra bit of manliness to his persona.
WTH Soo In?
Soo In is overcome with worry for Yoon Kang and his sister, and convinces Ho Kyung to take her to the mountain to wait for Yoon Kang. They arrive and see the soldiers swarming the area looking for their leader. Yoon Kang's sister comes riding on a horse, telling Soo In that her family is still up on the mountain and in danger. Ho Kyung turns to go tell the soldiers what is going on, but Soo In declares that there is no time, and pulls out her derringer. Soooooooooo.... You think that with your puny little gun, you are a better match against two snipers, then a whole fort of soldiers who are very close behind you? I guess they want us to think that they are far off, but the directing of this scene did not really portray that. Oh wait... false alarm she is just shooting the gun dramatically up into the air (whenever people do that I always wonder about the bullet falling back to the ground and possible casualties). Still kind of WTH, but with a little less level of stupidity involved.
Farewell BAD (Bad Ass Daddy), you will be missed.
It is rare that a parent in a Sageuk makes such an impact on the storyline. BAD was truly a hero, and someone who commanded attention anytime he was on screen. Injured and trapped in a cave with Yoon Kang, BAD decides to sacrifice himself so his son can live. He knocks out Yoon Kang (since his son is a tad bit stubborn and refused to leave his dad) and leads the two assassins away from the cave. As this drama constantly reminds us, swords can not defeat guns, and our BAD is finally killed. But it was not enough to just get rid of the King's man, the bad guys decide they have to ruin his reputation as well. They set it up that witness after witness come forward accusing BAD of treason against the crown. The king has no choice but to declare BAD a traitor and make his family suffer the consequences.
Traitors of the Crown
Yoon Kang's sister (might have to learn her name some day) is dragged away to become a slave and an order goes out for Yoon Kang's death. Soo In and Ho Kyung rush to prepare a boat for Yoon Kang's escape. Poor Yoon Kang is reluctant to leave his sister, but the whole "you cant protect her if you are dead" concept made him agree to go into hiding. We get a wonderfully done goodbye between our OTP (One True Pairing) but just as he is about to depart, the soldiers arrive along with the sniper, who shoots him in the heart. Yoon Kang falls out of the boat and he is presumed dead. Luckily for him the bullet actually hit the compass that he had been carrying, and Yoon Kang is taken away to Japan.
TIME JUMP!!!!!!!!!
We get a time jump as well as a wardrobe and hairstyle change (thank you Korea for perfecting the use of hair and clothes in your entertainment medias!) Yoon Kang has returned to exact his revenge. A sexier and more modern Yoon Kang (aka Hanjo) who is sporting a snazzy black suit and a modern pistol. I for one wholeheartedly approve of the change and look forward to next weeks episodes.
Sweet! A whole episode full or couple cuteness with a little action and political shenanigans thrown in for effect. Could a kdrama viewer ask for anything more? Episode 2 continued with the same mix of epic storytelling mixed with amazing cinematography. And if our leading characters are a little on the naive side, well, I am sure it is only a matter of time before the cruel world takes care of that.
We left off with our OTP (One True Pairing) facing off, gun vs, sword, cross dresser vs. historical hottie, Jung Soo In vs Park Yoon Kang. Yoon Kang rushes forward with his sword raised and Soo In shoots, luckily towards the sword and not Yoon Kang's head. As his sword shatters in half, Yoon Kang gapes at the broken shaft. "This is why I told you to leave me alone. A sword can never win against a gun" Soo In yells. Finally, realizing that the person crying in front of him is not the assassin, he tells Soo In to stop crying like a girl. Oh my goodness, the guy is a tad bit dense. I would understand not making the connection if he had not seen Soo In recently as a girl, but there is no excusing his lack of recognition. Her hair is just pulled back, she is not even trying to change her voice, or fake facial hair. This is not rocket science people! He lets her pass on her way still stunned at the destruction of his sword.
Further down the road the real assassin lines up his gun's scope on the last remaining scholar, pulls the trigger, but misses due to Yoon Kang's father throwing him out of the way. He tells the scholar to run, and then pursues the gunman yet again. Poor Bad Ass Daddy, every time he gets into a fight I brace myself for his tragic death. Sometimes knowing a synopsis can be a curse. But of course this is a Sageuk (historical drama) which means that people are going to be dying right and left. The trial of the Sageuk is being able to absorb and overcome the emotional crippling depression you get when a character you like dies. I still mourn for a few characters (won't say from which dramas since that would ruin the tragic surprise) years later.
But it is not BAD's (bad ass daddy) time yet, and he magically manages to run down the gunman who is trying to escape on a horse (Yup, running upon the rooftops, trumps traveling by horse in Asian film. It's a proven hypothesis.) and is able to capture the assassin.
FINALLY, we have some movement on the whole guy is really a girl situation (thank goodness since I don't want to spend all of the remaining happy times in the bromance zone). Yoon Kang asks Soo In to please put on his hat, and when she over enthusiastically refuses, he questions if she thought he was stupid or something (hmmmmm maybe for a minute) and that he would not figure out that the face is the same on both people. Soo In again denies, and Yoon Kang says, "Ahhhh the voices are the same as well" He continues to tease Soo In about calling the police since such a dangerous criminal lived at the house. She just huffs off, eager to hide her gun where the police won't find it. As Soo In finally decides on a good hiding place in the yard, we hear Yoon Kang's voice call out if that is really a good place to hide such a dangerous weapon. Our poor heroine is caught between a rock and a romantic lothario.
Yoon Kang announces that he will keep her secret........if she brings him tea in the morning. And the next morning as Soo In brings him his requested tea, Yoon Kang changes his mind and decides he needs a different tea (all the while grinning). Poor Soo In is ready to bean him with a tea pot when he then declares that he no longer feels like tea, and to bring it to him tomorrow instead. HAHAHA.
Finding out the reason for Soo In's manly disguise, Yoon Kang offers to help her with her clandestine meetings (and then ruins it by telling his bestie about the professors departure). She tries to fob him off but Yoon Kang points out that the port is a long distance to travel and going alone, she would be stuck out of town overnight. By using a horse they would be there and back before anyone noticed. Soo In reluctantly agrees and they set off the next morning.
For those of you who have forgotten, the book that our heroic couple is transporting, is the last works of the assassinated professor from episode 1. He wrote it in an effort to let people know the steps needed to create an society of enlightenment, the very thing that the bad guys want to stop. As the leader of the conservative party says "Sometimes a book can flip a world." which is why they must keep this book from being spread to the masses at all costs. If the book exists then the professor lives on with his ideals..
It is funny how Yoon Kang,while reading the all important book, just mumbles "how can it say equality for everyone on every single page." Phtttt the boy is obviously not a scholar. He then tells Soo In to be careful since this kind of thing can get her arrested for treason. They arrive at the port just in time to give the scholar the book. But sadly, for them everyone knows that the scholar is trying to escape and the gunman assassinates him in front of Soo In's eyes. A very cool gun/arrow fight occurs while our OTP try to escape (with the book), which causes the big bad to follow after them. Did anyone else get a "Terminator" vibe as the head assassin came up out of the water?
As they run for their lives with Terminator Assassin on their trail, Yoon Kang tells Soo In to hand him her gun, to which she sheepishly replies "I don't have it". HAHAHA Looking at her incredulously, she rushes to say that since she almost shot someone, and is too afraid to use it. What about Yoon Kang's sword? "You broke my sword, what do you think, that I am a sword merchant with a lot of extras?" is our hero's reply. Ha, these two crack me up. They struggle to stay ahead of the bad guy, but eventually Soo In's strength gives out and they pause at an abandoned house.
These two have obviously never watched a horror movie. When the bad guy
is hunting you down, avoid places such as conveniently
deserted houses (especially when it is the only shelter for miles around). Sure enough our hunter discovers the creepy building and begins searching room by room for our couple. Having seen his arrival, our OTP quickly wiggles under the floor and stayed silent as the assassin searched. He shoots into the floor just inches from their faces, but some stray rats come scurrying out which assures him that they are not there.
Nothing like a near death experience to create the right mood for love. At least that seems to be the case with our hero. Yoon Kang wakes up the following morning with his arms around Soo In. They each fake sleep and casually separate before going to the river to wash the sleep from their eyes. Yet another mistake since a good hunter knows that prey always comes to water sources at dawn and dusk. Although this time it looks like just bad luck that they all arrived at the river at the same time. The chase begins yet again, with our OTP running into a dead end. Deadly assassin in front of them and a huge cliff behind. Yet another great cliffhanger (pun intended hehehe) that leaves me wishing it was already next week. Random Thoughts. Yoon Kang is just so open and likable that it is impossible not to smile when he is onscreen. He looks at the gunman and current dangers almost in an abstract way, they exist, yet don't really touch his world. It is not a real for him even though his father is involved with catching the gunman. You can see this when he tells his best friend about the professors departure and also his disbelief that a gun could defeat a sword. It is not that he is not aware that the danger is there, it is just that he has been sheltered and not had to deal with that type of reality yet.
Soo In is very similar to Yoon Kang. She wants to do these important things and support the enlightenment movement, but at the same time her families lifestyle and standing have left her very sheltered. Soo In does not question that she can take care of herself, even though her actual skill levels are not up to par. We see this with her reactions to her gun, horses, and of course Yoon Kang as a man. The poor girl is just in over her head. Luckily she does not come across as stupid and annoying, just innocent and naive.
Choi Hye Won is one super scary lady. It is rare that you have this strong of a B leading lady in a Sageuk. Sure they might have some type of power from their families position, but for the most part the 2nd leads tend to be innocent and sweet. Hye Won is none of those things as she strikes terror into the hearts of those that oppose her. I find it very interesting that even when her father is present, she takes command of the situation. I truly hope that she continues to be a worthy adversary for our main couple.
We know that our leads are going to make it off that cliff alive, but how? When is BAD's time going to be up? Will we get more romantic cuteness next week before reality comes crashing down on all those involved? Be sure to come back for those answers and more next week. Kmuse
